Air Pollution

LECTURE NOTES
For Environmental Health Science Students

Air Pollution

Mengesha Admassu,
Mamo Wubeshet

University of Gondar

In collaboration with the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative, The Carter Center,
the Ethiopia Ministry of Health, and the Ethiopia Ministry of Education

August 2006

Funded under USAID Cooperative Agreement No. 663-A-00-00-0358-00.

Produced in collaboration with the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative, The Carter
Center, the Ethiopia Ministry of Health, and the Ethiopia Ministry of Education.

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Limited permission is granted free of charge to print or photocopy all pages of this
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publication.

2005 by Mengesha Admassu, Mamo Wubeshet

All rights reserved. Except as expressly provided above, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical,
including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without written permission of the author or authors.

This material is intended for educational use only by practicing health care workers or
students and faculty in a health care field.

i
PREFACE
Shortage of appropriate textbooks that could meet the need
for training professionals on the nature and the magnitude of
ambient and indoor air pollutions and their effects have been
one of the outstanding problems in the existing higher health
learning institutions in Ethiopia. Therefore, a well-developed
teaching material to produce the required qualified health
professionals, who are considered to shoulder the
responsibility of preventing and controlling of air pollutions by
creating awareness and entertaining some interventional
measures among the communities, is obvious.
The present lecture note on Air pollution is therefore,
prepared to be used as a teaching material to train mainly
environmental health and other students of health category in
Ethiopia. It is believed this teaching material plays a
significant role to solve the critical shortage of reference
books and text on the subject. The lecture note is designed to
make the training somehow a practical application to the
actual indoor and out door air pollutions in the country. It
contains five chapters in which the major current out/ in-door
air pollution problems with their suggested solutions are
discussed. Each chapter is presented in simple language and
is provided with learning objectives, body introduction,
exercises, and suggested reading as appropriate. Text books,

ii
journals, internet sources and other lecture manuscript are
used to develop this lecture material.
We have also incorporated the useful ideas of different
instructors of the course to standardize it to its present status,
which the authors hope to further improve the draft through
the consultations, pretest and revisions. It is also hoped that
this lecture note will be of particular use not only for students
of health category in colleges and universities, but to those
graduates working in health care service institutions and
environmental protection agencies.

iii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We would like to express our thanks to The Carter Center,
Atlanta Georgia, for financial supports to the subsequent
workshops conducted to develop the lecture note.
The Carter Center would also be acknowledged for providing
useful guidelines, technical and moral support during the
development of the lecture note. All the instructors, who
teach the courses in the existing higher teaching-learning
institutions, who critically reviewed the manuscript on
subsequent mini-workshops, are acknowledged.
Finally, we thank all the individuals who have in some ways
contributed to this lecture note, either in conversations with us
or through reviewing the draft.

iv
Table Contents
Preface ........................................................................ i
Acknowledgements ...................................................... iii
Table of content ........................................................... iv
List of Tables ................................................................ viii
List of figures/boxes ..................................................... ix
Abbreviation ................................................................. x
CHAPTER ONE: Introduction ...................................... 1
1.1. Learning Objective .......................................... 1
1.2. Introduction to the course ............................... 1
1.3. Historical Overview ......................................... 8
1.4. Definition of terms and scale conversion ........ 10
1.5. Energy Transfer .............................................. 14
1.6. Public Health importance of Air Pollution ....... 15
1.7. Exercise question ........................................... 17
CHAPTER TWO: Meteorology and Air Pollution ......... 18
2.2. Introduction to the chapter .............................. 18
2.3. Temperature Lapse rate and stability ............. 21
2.4. Wind velocity and turbulence ......................... 32
2.5. Plume behavior ............................................... 34
2.6. The Gaussian Plume Model ........................... 37
2.7. Estimation of Plume rise ................................ 42

v
CHAPTER THREE: Sources, Types of Air Pollutants
and Their Effects.................................................... 46
3.1 Learning Objective ........................................... 46
3.2 Introduction to the Chapter .............................. 46
3.3 Common condition to which air pollution exposure
may contribute ................................................. 47
3.4 Types of Air Pollutants ..................................... 49
3.4.1. Conventional Air Pollutants .................. 49
3.4.2. Non Conventional Air Pollutants ........... 62
3.5. Magnitude and source of ambient air pollution 78
CHAPTER FOUR: Industrial Air Pollution .................. 84
4.3 Types of Industrial Air Pollutants .................... 85
4.4 Air Pollution from Industrial Accidents ............ 87
4.5 Air Pollution in the Workplace ......................... 90
CHAPTER FIVE: Global Environmental Problems
Due to Air Pollution ....................................... 93
5.2. Introduction to the Chapter ............................. 93
5.3. Global warming (Green house effect) ........... 94
5.4. Ozone depletion ............................................ 97
5.5. Acid Rain ....................................................... 100

vi
CHAPTER SIX: Indoor Air Pollution ........................... 107
6.3. Environmental tobacco smoke ....................... 109
6.4. Radon gas ...................................................... 110
6.5. Formaldehyde ............................................... 113
6.6. Asbestos ......................................................... 114
6.7. Lead ................................................................ 114
6.8. Carbon Monoxide ........................................... 115
6.9. Biological Contaminants ................................ 119
6.10. Building materials, furnitures and chemical
products ......................................................... 120
6.11. Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) ..................... 120
6.12. Indoor air pollution in relation to developing
countries ........................................................ 124
6.13. Exercise questions ....................................... 135
CHAPTER SEVEN: Risk Assessment ........................ 136
7.3 The health risk assessment and risk
management framework ............................... 137
7.4. Epidemiological methods ................................ 139
7.5. Hazard identification in the field ..................... 153

vii
7.6. The relationship between dose and health
outcome ........................................................ 155
7.7. Human exposure assessment ....................... 157
7.8. Health risk characterization ........................... 171
7.9. Health in environmental impact assessment (EIA) 172
7.10. Exercise question ......................................... 176
CHAPTER EIGHT: Sampling and Analysis .............. 177
8.3 Ambient Air Quality Standards and Guidelines 178
8.4 Exercise question ............................................ 184
CHAPTER NINE: Air Pollution Prevention and Control 185
9.3. Control of Ambient Air Pollution .................... 187
REFERENCES ............................................................. 196
APPENDIX ................................................................... 199
1. Weather- man wind measuring reports system
2. Some questions worth asking about fuel, cooking and
ventilation
3. Indoor air sampling procedure
4. Composition of clean dry Atmospheric air

viii
List of Tables
1. Examples of common conditions to which air exposure
may contribute .................................................................. 48
2. Potential Human effects of Nitrogen Dioxide .................... 55
3. Major types of occupational pulmonary disease .............. 81
4. Common air pollutants, their sources and pathological
effects on man ................................................................. 82
5. Types of air pollution by chemical characteristics and
source ............................................................................. 86
6. Predicted carboxyl hemoglobin levels for subjects
engaged in Different types of work ................................... 116
7. Human Health effects associated with Low-Level
carbon monoxide exposure: Lowest-observed-
adverse-effect level .......................................................... 118
8. Sources of pollutant Emissions in the United States 1959 122
9. Relative contribution of different emissions and respective
pollutants in Sao Paulo. Brazil .......................................... 179
10. Air quality standards, United States, 1989 ........................ 181
11. WHO Air quality guidelines for Europe, Revised 1994 ..... 182

ix
List of Figures/boxes
Figures
1. Deaths in London Administration country and the
outer ring by weeks .............................................. 53
2. Range of particles diameters from Airborne Dusts
and fumes. ............................................................ 60
3. Deposition of dust particles by size ...................... 70

Boxes
1. London Fog .......................................................... 51
2. Bhopal A case study of an International disaster 89
3. Motor vehicle Air pollution: Health effects and control
strategies .............................................................. 197

x
ABBREVIATIONS
CNS Central Nerve System
COHb- Carboxihemoglobine.
DALYS Disability Adjusted Life Years
EPA Environmental Protection Agency
EPHTI - Ethiopian Public Health Training Initiative
GCMHS Gondar College of Medical and Health Sciences
IR- Infrared Radiation
LOAEL Lowest Observed Adverse Effect Level
M.P.H. Miles Per Hour
PM Particulate Matter
TSM Total Suspended Matter
TSP Total Suspended Particulates
UOG- University of Gondar
UV- Ultra-Violet rays
VOC- Volatile Organic Compounds

1
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION
1.1. Learning Objective
After the completion of this chapter, the student will be able
to:
1. Describe the importance of Air as the basic health
requirement of human life
2. Define what air pollution means and other related terms
3. Enumerate different types of air pollutants
4. List physical forms of pollutants
1.2. Introduction to the course
Air is essential for life it self; without it we could survive only a
few minutes. It constitutes immediate physical environment of
living organisms. It is a mixture of various gases like nitrogen,
oxygen and carbon dioxide, and others in traces; along with
water vapor perceptible as humidity and suspended solids in
particulate form.
The atmosphere is layered in to four distinct zones of
contrasting temperature due to differential absorption of solar
energy. The four atmospheric layers are: Troposphere,
stratosphere, mesosphere, and thermosphere. Understanding

2
how these layers differ and what creates them helps us
understand atmospheric function.
TROPOSPHERE
The layer of air immediately adjacent to the earths surface is
called the troposphere. Ranging in depth from about 16 km
(10 mile) over the equator to about 8 km over the poles, this
zone is where most weather events occur .Due to the force of
gravity and the compressibility of gases, the troposphere
contains about 80% of the total mass of the atmosphere .Air
temperature drops rapidly with increasing altitude in this layer,
reaching about -60
0
C at the top of the troposphere .A sudden
reversal of this temperature gradient creates a sharp
boundary, the tropopause, that limits mixing between the
troposphere and the upper zones.
Other characteristics of troposphere
All life activities occur in this zone
Contains water vapor, gases and dust
The residence time of particle in the troposphere is
short due to rain (ppt), gravity, air movement
Mixing time is rapid due to wind or turbulence
STRATOSPHERE
The stratosphere extends from the tropopause up to about 50
km. Air temperature in this zone is stable or even increases
with higher altitude. Although more dilute than the

3
troposphere, the stratosphere has a very similar composition
except two important components: water and ozone. The
fractional volume of water vapor is about one hundred times
lower, and ozone is nearly one thousand times higher than in
the troposphere. Ozone is produced by lighting and irradiation
of oxygen molecules and would not be present if
photosynthetic organisms were not releasing oxygen. Ozone
protects life on the earth surface by absorbing most incoming
solar ultra violet radiation.
Recently discovered decreases in stratospheric ozone over
the Antarctica (and to a lesser extent over the whole planet)
are of a serious concern if these trends continue, we would be
exposed to increasing amount of dangerous UV rays,
resulting in:
Higher rate of skin cancer
Problem with eyes (Cataract, conjunctivitis etc.)
Genetic mutations
Crop failures &
Disruption of important living organisms
Other characteristics of stratosphere
Contain no water vapor and dust
Amount of ozone vary depending on location and
season of the year. Ozone concentration are lowest
above the equator, increasing towards the poles, they
also increased markedly between autumn and spring

4
Mixing time is lower
Pollution entering in this region tends to remain long
time due to low mixing
MESOSPHERE
Above the stratosphere, the temperature diminishes again
creating the mesosphere, or the middle layer. The minimum
temperature in this region is about -80C.
THERMOSPHERE
At an altitude of 80 km, another abrupt temperature change
occurs. This is the beginning of the thermosphere, a region of
highly ionized gases, extending to about 1600 km.
Temperatures are very high in the thermosphere because
molecules there are constantly bombarded by high energy
solar & cosmic radiation
The lower part of the thermosphere is called the ionosphere;
this is where the aurora borealis (northern lights) appears
when showers of solar or cosmic energy causes ionized
gases to emit visible light. There is no sharp boundary that
marks the end of the atmosphere. Pressure and density
decreases gradually as one travels away from the earth until
they become indistinguishable from the near vacuum of
interstellar space. The composition of the thermosphere also
gradually merges with that of interstellar space, being made
up mostly of He & H
2
.

5
The immediate concern of human beings is that the nature of
air they breathe for oxygen and respiratory should always be
access to human body. The thermal comfort experienced and
the smell and hearing sense activated through the medium of
air are of other area of health concern.
What is air Pollution?
Air pollution may be defined as any atmospheric condition in
which certain substances are present in such concentrations
that they can produce undesirable effects on man and his
environment. These substances include gases (SOx, NOx,
CO, HCs, etc) particulate matter (smoke, dust, fumes,
aerosols) radioactive materials and many others. Most of
these substances are naturally present in the atmosphere in
low (background) concentrations and are usually considered
to be harmless. The background concentrations of various
components of dry air near sea level and their estimated
residence times are given in Annex-1 Thus, a particular
substance can be considered as an air pollutant only when its
concentration is relatively high compared with the back
ground value and causes adverse effects.
Air pollution is a problem of obvious importance in most of the
world that affects human, plant and animal health. For
example, there is good evidence that the health of 900 million
urban people suffers daily because of high levels of ambient
air sulfur dioxide concentrations. Air pollution is one of the

6
most serious environmental problems in societies at all level
of economic development. Air pollution can also affect the
properties of materials (such as rubber), visibility, and the
quality of life in general. Industrial development has been
associated with emission to air of large quantities of gaseous
and particulate emissions from both industrial production and
from burning fossil fuels for energy and transportation.
When technology was introduced to control air pollution by
reducing emissions of particles, it was found that the gaseous
emissions continued and caused problems of their own.
Currently efforts to control both particulate and gaseous
emissions have been partially successful in much of the
developed world, but there is recent evidence that air pollution
is a health risk even under these relatively favorable
conditions.
In societies that are rapidly developing sufficient resources
may not be invested in air pollution control because of other
economic and social priorities. The rapid expansion of the
industry in these countries has occurred at the same time as
increasing traffic from automobiles and trucks, increasing
demands for power for the home, and concentration of the
population in large urban areas called mega cities. The result
has been some of the worst air pollution problem in the world.
In many traditional societies, and societies where crude
household energy sources are widely available, air pollution

7
is a serious problem because of inefficient and smoky fuels
used to heat buildings and cook. This causes air pollution
both out door and indoors. The result can be lung disease,
eye problems, and increased risk of cancer.
The quality of air indoors is a problem also in many developed
countries because buildings were built to be airtight and
energy efficient. Chemicals produced by heating and cooling
systems, smoking and evaporation from buildings materials
accumulate indoors and create a pollution problem.
In Ethiopia, like many traditional societies, the problem of
indoors air pollutions resulted from in efficient and smoky
fuels used to heat buildings and cook. In the rural households
of Ethiopia, most of the children and women are staying in
overcrowded condition of a one roomed /thatched roof /Tukul/
house that exposed them for the indoor air pollution. It is also
known that mothers and children are spending more than
75% percent of their day time at home.
Identification of the problems of both at out doors and indoors
air pollutions in the societies one has to make interventions to
alleviate the health related problems and promote safe
ventilation of air in the living and working areas. First,
however, some basic science is needed to understand air
pollution.

8
1.3. Historical overview
Human have undoubtedly been coping with a certain amount of
polluted air ever since primitive Homo sapiens sat crouched by
the warmth of a smoky fire in his Paleolithic cave. An inevitable
consequence of fuel combustion, air pollution mounted as a
source of human discomfort as soon as man begins to live in
towns and cities. It has become an extremely serious problem
on the world wide basis during the past century for two primarily
reasons:
1. There has been an enormous increase in world
population, particularly in urban areas, and
2. The rapid growth of energy intensive industries and
rising level of affluence in the developed countries has
led to record levels of fossil fuel combustion
Prior to the 20
th
Century problems related to air pollution were
primarily associated, in public mind at least, with city of
London. As early as 18
th
Century small amount of coal from
Newcastle were being shipped in London for fuel. As the
population and the manufacturing enterprises grew, wood
supplies diminished and coal burning increased, in spite of
the protestation of a long serious of both monarchs and
private citizens who objected to the odor of coal smoke. One
petitioner to king Charles II in 1661 complained that due to the
greed of manufacturers, inhabitants of London were forced to
breath nothing but an impure and thick mist, accompanied by

9
a fuliginous (sooty) and filthy vapor, which render them
obnoxious to a thousand in conveniences, corrupting the
lungs, disordering the entire habit of their bodies.
In spite of such railings, English coal combustion increased
even faster than the rate of population growth and by the 19
th

Century Londons thick, pear soup fogs had become a
notorious trade mark of the city, numerous well meaning
attempts at smoke abatement were largely ignored during the
hay day of laissez-faire capitalism, epitomized by the
industrialists slogan where there is muck there is money
The same condition, which had made London air pollution
capital of the world, began to prevail in the United States as
well during the 19
th
and early 20
th
Century. St. Louis. Plagued
by smoke condition. Passed an ordinance as early as 1867
mandating that smoke stacks be at least 20 ft higher than
adjacent buildings The Chicago City council in 1881 passed
the notion first smoke ordinance. Pittsburgh, once one of the
smokiest cities in the US was the site of pioneer work at the
Mellon In the harmful impact of smoke both on property and
human health .In spite of gradually increasing public
awareness of the problem, levels of air pollution and the
geographical extent of the areas affected continued to
increase. Although by the late 1950s and 1960s large scale
fuel switching from coal to natural gas oil had significantly
reduced smoke condition in many American cities, other

10
newer pollutants products of the new ubiquitous automobile
had assumed worrisome level.
Today foul air has become a problem of global proportions; no
longer does one have to travel to London or Pittsburg or Los
Angeles to experience the respiratory irritation or the aesthetic
distress. The contaminated atmosphere can provoke in the
1990s virtually every metropolitan area in the world New
York, Rome Athens, Bombay, Tokyo, Mexico City capitalist
and communities industrialized and developing nation alike
are grappling with the problem of how to halt further
deterioration air quality with out impending
1.4. Definition of terms and scale
conversion
1.4.1. Air pollution: - concentration of foreign matter in
air in excessive quantity which is harmful to the
health of man.
1.4.2. Indoor air pollutions: - Pollutions from the housing
made materials and living and working activities of
the house, such as: natural radiation-radon,
domestic combustion-coal gas, and human habits-
tobacco smoking.
1.4.3. Out door air pollution: - Pollutions from out door
services and environmental mixings, such as:

11
transportation-automobiles, industries-refineries,
atomic energy plant-nuclear, and community
activities-cleaning of streets.
1.4.4. Acute effects: - with in twenty four hours of sudden
exposure to polluted air illness would occur.
1.4.5. Delayed effect: - The cause and effect relationship
of air pollution and chronic effects on health is in a
way difficult to prove due to long time contact and
accumulation effect.
1.4.6. Aerosols: - Small solid or liquid particles (fine
drops or droplets) that are suspended in air.
1.4.7. Dust: - aerosols consist of particles in the solid
phase.
1.4.8. Smoke: - aerosols consist of particles in the solid-
and sometimes also liquid-phase and the
associated gases that result from combustion.
1.4.9. Ash: - aerosols of the solid phase of smoke,
particularly after it settles into a fine dust.
1.4.10. Particulates: - Small particles, that travel in air and
settles or lands on something.
1.4.11. Fumes: - are polydispersed fine aerosols consisting
of solid particles that often aggregate together, so
that many little particulates may form one big
particle.

12
1.4.12. Inhalable fraction: - Particles less than 100 m
that can be inhaled into the respiratory throat
(trachea).
1.4.13. Thoracic fraction: - Those particles below 20 m,
that can penetrate into the lungs.
1.4.14. Respirable range: - the greatest penetration and
retention of particles is in the range 10.0 to 0.1 m.
1.4.15. Mist: - A cloud or dense collection of droplets
suspended in air.
1.4.16. Vapour: - The evaporated compound in the gas
phase.
1.4.17. Troposphere: - The first and lowest of the
atmospheric layers is called the troposphere.
1.4.18. Stratosphere: - The second layer of air is called
the stratosphere.
1.4.19. Ionosphere: - Above the stratosphere is the
ionosphere the top of which is the border line
space.
1.4.20. Thermosphere:- This is a region of highly ionized
gases, extending to about 1600 km.
1.4.21. Mesosphere: - Above the stratosphere, or the
middle layer.
1.4.22. Wind: - Is simply air in motion

13
Unit of measurement
Concentrations of air pollutants are commonly expressed as
the mass of pollutant per Unit volume of air mixture, as
mg/m
3
, g/m
3
, ng /m
3

Concentration of gaseous pollutants may also be expressed
as volume of pollutant per million volumes of the air plus
pollutant mixture (ppm) where 1ppm= 0.0001 % by volume. It
is sometimes necessary to convert from volumetric units to
mass per unit volume and vice versa.
The relation ship between ppm and mg/m
3
depends on the
gas density, which in turn depends on:
Temperature
Pressure
Molecular weight of the pollutant
The following expression can be uses to convert of between
ppm and mg/m
3
at any temperature or pressure.

mg/m
3
= 273 X PPM X molecular wt. X pressure
22.4 X temperature
Simply multiply the calculated value of mg/m
3
by 1000 to
obtain g/m
3

The constant 22.4 is the volume in liter occupied by 1 mole of
an ideal gas at standard concentration (0
0
c and 1 atm.). One

14
mole of any substance is a quantity of that substance whose
mass in grams numerically equals its molecular weight
1.5. Energy transfer in the
atmosphere
The physical &chemical characteristics of the atmosphere and
the critical heat balance of the earth are determined by energy
and mass transfer processes in the atmosphere.
Incoming solar energy is largely in the visible region of the
spectrum (400-700nm). The shorter wavelength blue solar
light is scattered relatively more strongly by molecules and
particles in the upper atmosphere, which is why the sky is
blue as it is viewed by scattered light. Similarly, light that has
been transmitted through scattering atmospheres appears
red, particularly around the sun set and sun rise, and under
circumstances in which the atmosphere contains a high level
of particles.
Radiation from the sun arrives just out side the earths
atmosphere with average annual intensity; called the solar
constant (isolation) S, currently equal about 1370 W/m
2
. If all this
energy reached the earths surface and was retained, the planet
would have vaporized log ago

15
Some of the incoming solar energy that hits the earth is
reflected back in to the space; such reflected energy is not
absorbed by the earth or its atmosphere and does not
contribute their heating. The fraction of incoming solar radiation
that is a reflected is called albedo, and for the earth, the global
annual mean value is now estimated to be about 31 percent.
1.6. Public Health importance of Air
1.6.1 Air pollution is a very complicated physical and
chemical system. It can be thought of as a variety
of constituents that are dissolved or suspended in
air, many of which interact with one another and
many of which acts together to produce their
effects.
1.6.2 The constituents of air pollution change with the
season, with industrial activity, with changes in
traffic, and with the prevailing winds, to name just
a few relevant factors. The composition of air
pollution is, therefore, not constant from day to day
or even week to week on an average, but trends to
cycle. Average levels go up and down fairly
consistently depending on the time of year but the
actual levels are highly variable from one year to
the next.

16
1.6.3 One of the most dangerous modes of transmission
of health related problems is, air serves as a
vehicle. Therefore poor ventilation of air and
overcrowding conditions are creating more
favorable situation to the transmission of
pollutants.
1.6.4 In Ethiopia rural household conditions, where there
are more family members, without having enough
number of doors and windows and staying at
home significant proportion of the day time are
highly victims for indoor air pollutions.

17
1.7. Exercise question
Table 1.1: Exercise on the basic requirements for a
healthy environment
Please make a rank according to their degree of importance
to health
Using => ++++ Highly important
+++ Moderately important
++ Important
+ Less important
- No important
Parameter Air Water Food Settlement
Degree of importance
Degree of accessibility
Magnitude of health problem
Risk of pollution at the Global level
Risk of pollution at the National level
Manageability level:
-Globally
- National
- Households

Preventive and control measures:
- At policy
- At community
- At households

Other parameters that need to be consider

18
CHAPTER TWO
METEOROLOGY AND AIR
POLLUTION
2.1. Learning objective
to:
1. Describe the importance of metrology regarding to air
pollution
2. Identify the importance of environmental and
adiabatic laps rate
3. State the role of inversion on the concentration of air
pollutants
4. Analyze plumes behavior in different environmental
conditions
2.2. Introduction to the chapter
Meteorology specifies what happen to puff or plume of
pollutants from the time it is emitted to the time it is detected
at some other location. The motion of the air causes a dilution
of air pollutant concentration and we would like to calculate
how much dilution occurs as a function of the meteorology or
atmospheric condition.

19
Air pollutants emitted from anthropogenic sources must first
be transported and diluted in the atmosphere before these
under go various physical and photochemical transformation
and ultimately reach their receptors. Otherwise, the pollutant
concentrations reach dangerous level near the source of
emission. Hence, it is important that we understand the
natural processes that are responsible for their dispersion.
The degree of stability of the atmosphere in turn depends on
the rate of change of ambient temperature with altitude.
I. VERTICAL DISPERSION OF POLLUTANTS
As a parcel of air in the atmosphere rises, it experience s
decreasing pressure and thus expands. This expansion
lowers the temperature of the air parcel, and there fore the air
cools as it rises. The rate at which dry air cools as it rises is
called the dry adiabatic lapse rate and is independent of the
ambient air temperature. The term adiabatic means that there
is no heat exchange between the rising parcel of air under
consideration and the surrounding air. The dry adiabatic lapse
rate can be calculated from the first law of thermodynamics
(1C per 100m)
As the air parcel expands, it does work on the surroundings.
Since the process is usually rapid, there is no heat transfer
between the air parcel and the surrounding air.

20
Saturated adiabatic lapse rate, (s)
Unlike the dry adiabatic lapse rate, saturated adiabatic lapse
rate is not a constant, since the amount of moisture that the
air can hold before condensation begins is a function of
temperature. A reasonable average value of the moist
adiabatic lapse rate in the troposphere is about 6C/Km.
Example
An air craft flying at an altitude of 9 km draws in fresh air at -
40C for cabin ventilation. If that fresh air is compressed to
the pressure at sea level, would the air need to be heated or
cooled if it is to be delivered to the cabin at 20C.
Solution
As the air is compressed, it warms up it is even easier for the
air to hold whatever moisture it may have, had .so there is no
condensation to worry about and the dry adiabatic lapse rate
can be used, At 10C per km, compression will raise the air
temperature by
10x9=90C making it -40+90c=50C
It needs to be the air conditioned
The air in motion is called wind, air which is rushing from an
area of high pressure towards an area of low pressure. When
the weather-man reports the wind to us he uses a measuring
system worked out in 1805 by Adoniral Beaufort. For

21
example, a moderate breeze is a wind of 13 to 18 miles an
hour (see annex 2).
Obviously air quality at a given site varies tremendously from
day to day, even though the emissions remain relatively
constant. The determining factors have to do the weather:
how strong the winds are, what direction they are blowing ,
the temperature profile , how much sun light available to
power photochemical reactions, and how long it has been
since the last strong winds or precipitation were able to clear
the air. Air quality is dependent on the dynamics of the
atmosphere, the study of which is called meteorology
2.3. Temperature lapse rate and
stability
The ease with which pollutants can disperse vertically into the
atmosphere is largely determined by the rate of change of air
temperature with altitude. For some temperature profiles the
air is stable, that is, air at a given altitude has physical forces
acting on it that make it want to remain at that elevation.
Stable air discourages the dispersion and dilution of
pollutants. For other temperature profiles, the air is unstable.
In this case rapid vertical mixing takes place that encourages
pollutant dispersal and increase air quality. Obviously, vertical
stability of the atmosphere is an important factor that helps

22
determine the ability of the atmosphere to dilute emissions;
hence, it is crucial to air quality.
Let us investigate the relationship between atmospheric
stability and temperature. It is useful to imagine a parcel of
air being made up of a number of air molecules with an
imaginary boundary around them. If this parcel of air moves
upward in the atmosphere, it will experience less pressure,
causing it to expand and cool. On the other hand, if it moves
dawn ward, more pressure will compress the air and its
temperature will increase.
As a starting point, we need a relationship that expires an air
parcels change of temperature as it moves up or down in the
atmosphere. As it moves, we can imagine its temperature,
pressure and volume changing, and we might imagine its
surrounding adding or subtracting energy from the parcel. If
we make small changes in these quantities, and apply both
the ideal gas law and the first law of thermodynamics, it is
relatively straightforward to drive the following expression.
dQ=CpdT VdP.. (2.1)
Where: dQ = heat added to the parcel per unit mass (J/kg)
Cp = Specific heat at a constant pressure (1005J/Kg-
o
C)
dT= Incremental temperature change(
o
C)
V = volume per unit mass (m3/kg)
dP = Incremental pressure change in the parcel(Pa)

23
Let us make the quite accurate assumption that as the parcel
moves, there is no heat transferred across its boundary, that
is, that this process is adiabatic
This means that dQ = 0; so we can rearrange (2.1) as
) 2 . 2 ( =
Cp
V
dP
dT

The above equation gives us an indication of how
atmospheric temperature would change with air pressure, but
what are really interested in is how it changes with altitude .To
do that we need to know how pressure and altitude are
related.
Consider a static column of air with a cross section A, as
shown in figure 2.1 .A horizontal slice of air in that column of
thickness dZ and density will have mass AdZ. If the
pressure at the top of the slice due to the weight of air above
it is P(Z+dZ), then the pressure at the bottom of the slice
,P(Z) will be P(z+dz)plus the added weight per unit area of
the slice it self:

24

) 3 . 2 ( ) ( ) ( + + =
A
Adz g
dz z P z P

Where: g is the gravitational constant. We can write the
incremental pressure dP for incremental change in
elevation, dz as
dP= p(z+dz) p(z) = -gdz(2.4)
Expressing the rate of change in temperature with altitude as
a product, and substituting in (2.2) and (2.3), gives
) 5 . 2 ( ) ( = = g
Cp
V
dZ
dP
dP
dT
dZ
dT

However, since V is volume per unit mass and is mass per
unit volume, the product V=1 , and the expression simplifies
to
) 6 . 2 (
=
Cp
g
dZ
dT

25
The negative sign indicates that temperature decreases with
increasing altitude. Substituting the constant g =9.806m/s
2
,
and the constant volume specific heat of dry air at room
temperature, Cp 1005J/kg. 0C in (2.6) yields

m c
s m Kg
J
x
oC kg J
s m
dZ
dT
/ 00976 . 0
/
1
/ 1005
2 / 806 . 9
0
2 2
=

=
.(2.7)

C km C
dZ
dT
0 0
10 / 76 . 9 = = . (2.8)

ATMOSPHERIC STABILITY
The ability of the atmosphere to disperse the pollutants
emitted in to it depends to a large extent on the degree of
stability. A comparison of the adiabatic lapse rate with the
environmental lapse rate gives an idea of stability of the
atmosphere.
When the environmental lapse rate and the dry adiabatic
lapse rate are exactly the same, a raising parcel of air will
have the same pressure and temperature and the density of
the surroundings and would experience no buoyant force.
Such atmosphere is said to be neutrally stable where a
displaced mass of air neither tends to return to its original
position nor tends to continue its displacement

26

When the environmental lapse rate (-dT/dz.)Env is greater
than the dry adiabatic lapse rate, the atmosphere is said to
be super adiabatic. Hence a raising parcel of air, cooling at
the adiabatic rate, will be warmer and less dense than the
surrounding environment. As a result, it becomes more
buoyant and tends to continue its up ward motion. Since
vertical motion is enhanced by buoyancy, such an
atmosphere is called unstable. In the unstable atmosphere
the air from different altitudes mixes thoroughly. This is very
desirable from the point of view of preventing pollution, since
the effluents will be rapidly dispersed through out atmosphere.
On the other hand, when the environmental lapse rate is less
than the dry adiabatic lapse rate, a rising air parcel becomes
cooler and denser than its surroundings and tends to fall back
to its original position. Such an atmospheric condition is called
stable and the lapse rate is said to be sub adiabatic. Under
stable condition their is very little vertical mixing and pollutants

27
can only disperse very slowly. As result, their levels can build
up very rapidly in the environment.
When the ambient lapse rate and the dry adiabatic lapse rate
are exactly the same, the atmosphere has neutral stability.
Super adiabatic condition prevails when the air temperature
drops more than 1C /100m; sub adiabatic condition prevail
when the air temperature drops at the rate less than 1c/100m
Inversion
Atmospheric inversion influences the dispersion of pollutants
by restricting vertical mixing. There are several ways by which
inversion layers can be formed .One of the most common
types is the elevated subsidence inversion, This is usually
associated with the sub tropical anti cyclone where the air is
warmed by compression as it descends in a high pressure
system and achieves temperature higher than that of the air
under neath. If the temperature increase is sufficient, an
inversion will result
It lasts for months on end
Occur at higher elevation
More common in summer than winter

28

Altitude
Inversion layer

The subsidence is caused by air flowing down to replace air,
which has flowed out of the high-pressure region
Radiation Inversion
The surface of the earth cools down at night by radiating
energy toward space. On cloudy night, the earths radiation
tends to be absorbed by water vapor, which in turn reradiates
some of that energy back to the ground. On the clear night,
however, the surface more readily radiate energy to space,
and thus ground cooling occurs much more rapidly. As the
ground cools, the temperature of the air in contact with the
ground also drops. As is often the case on clear winter nights,
the temperature of this air just above the ground becomes
colder than the air above it, creating an inversion. Radiation
inversions begins to form at dusk .As the evening progresses,
the inversion extends to a higher and higher elevation,
reaching perhaps a few hundred meters before the morning
sun warms the ground again, breaking up the inversion.

29
Radiation inversion occurs close to the ground, mostly during
the winter, and last for only a matter of hours. They often
begin at about the time traffic builds up in the early evening,
which traps auto exhaust at ground level and causes elevated
concentration of pollution for commuters. With out sunlight,
photochemical reactions can not takes place, so the biggest
problem is usually accumulation of carbon monoxide (CO). In
the morning, as the sun warms the ground and the inversion
begins to the break up, pollutants that have been trapped in
the stable air mass are suddenly brought back to earth in a
process known as fumigation. Fumigation can cause short-
lived high concentrations of pollution at ground level.
Radiation inversions are important in another context besides
air pollution. Fruit growers in places like California have long
known that their crops are in greatest danger of frost damage
on winter nights when the skies are clear and a radiation
inversion sets in. Since the air even a few meters up is
warmer than the air at crop level, one way to help protect
sensitive crops on such nights is simply to mix the air with
large motor driven fans.

30

Subsidence inversion

Radiation inversion

Temperature
The third type of inversion, know as advective inversion is
formed when warm air moves over a cold surface or cold air.
The inversion can be a ground based in the former case, or
elevated in the latter case. An example of an elevated
advective inversion occurs when a hill range forces a warm
land breeze to follow at high levels and cool sea breathes
flows at low level in the opposite direction.
TOPOGRAPHICAL EFFECTS
In large bodies of water the thermal inertia of the water
causes a slower temperature change than the near by land.
For example, along an ocean coastline and during periods of
high solar input, the daytime air temperature over the ocean is
lower than over the land. The relative warm air over the land

31
rises and replaced by cooler ocean air. The system is usually
limited to altitudes of several hundred meters, which of
course, is where pollutants are emitted. The breeze develops
during the day and strongest in mid after noon. At night the
opposite may occur, although, usually not with such large
velocities. At night the ocean is relatively warm and the
breeze is from the cooler land the warmer ocean. The on
shore breeze is most likely in the summer months, while the
off-shore land breeze more likely occur in winter months.
A second common wind system caused by topographical
effect is the mountain - valley wind. In this case the air tends
to flow down the valley at night Valleys are cooler at higher
elevation and the driving force for the airflow result from the
differential cooling. Similarly, cool air drains off the mountain
at night and flows in to the valley. During the day light hours
an opposite flow may occur as the heated air adjacent to the
sun warmed ground begins to rise and flow both up the valley
and up the mountain slopes. However, thermal turbulence
may mask the daytime up- slope flow so that it is not as
strong as the nighttime down - slope flow.
Both the sea breeze and the mountain valley wind are
important in meteorology of air pollution. Large power stations
are often located on ocean costs or adjacent to large lakes. In
this case the stack effluent will tend to drift over the land
during the day and may be subjected to fumigation.

32
2.4. Wind velocity and turbulence
The wind velocity profile is influenced by the surface
roughness and time of the day. During the day, solar heating
causes thermal turbulence or eddies set up convective
currents so that turbulent mixing is increased. This results in a
more flat velocity profile in the day than that at night.
The second type of turbulence is the mechanical turbulence,
which is produced by shearing stress generated by air
movement over the earths surface. The greater the surface
roughness, the greater the turbulence.
The mean wind speed variation with altitude is the planetary
boundary layer can be represented by a simple empirical
power.
U
U
Z
Z 1 1
211 =

( . )
Where: U is the wind at altitude Z
U
1
is the wind speed at altitude Z
1

The exponent varies between 0.14 and 0.5 depending
on the roughness of the ground surface as well as on
the temperature stability of the atm.
= 0.25 for unstable atmosphere
= 0.5 for stable condition

33
In practice, because of the appreciable change in wind speed
with altitude, a wind speed value must be quoted with respect
to the elevation at which it is measured. This reference height
for surface wind measurement is usually 10 meters
Table 2.1: Wind velocity in different topography
Surface configuration Stability
Smooth open country Unstable
Neutral
Moderate stability
Large stability
0.11
0.14
0.20
0.33
Flat open country 0.16
Sub-urns 0.28
Urban area 0.40
Atmospheric turbulence is characterized by different sizes of
eddies. These eddies are primarily responsible for diluting and
transporting the pollutants injected in to the atmosphere. If the
size of the eddies is larger then the size of the plume or a puff
then the plume or the puff will be transported down wind by
the eddy with little dilution. Molecular diffusion will ultimately
dissipate the plume or the puff. If the eddy is smaller than the
plume or the puff, the plume or the puff will be disperse
uniformly as the eddy entrains fresh air at its boundary.

34
2.5. Plume behavior
The behavior of a plume emitted from an elevated source
such as a tall stack depends on the degree of instability of the
atmosphere and the prevailing wind turbulence.
Classification of plume behavior
1. Looping: it occurs under super adiabatic conditions with
light to moderate wind speeds on a hot summer after
noon when large scale thermal eddies are present. The
eddies carry portion of a plume to the ground level for
short time periods, causing momentary high surface
concentration of pollutants near the stack. Thus the plume
moves about vertically in a spastic fashion and the
exhaust gases disperse rapidly
2. Conning: It occurs under cloudy skies both during day
and night, when the lapse rate is essentially neutral. The
plume shape is vertically symmetrical about the plume
line and the major part of the pollutant concentration is
carried down -wind fairly far before reaching the ground
level.
3. Fanning: occurs when the plume is dispersed in the
presence of very light winds as a result of strong
atmospheric inversions. The stable lapse rate suppresses
the vertical mixing, but not the horizontal mixing entirely.
For high stacks, fanning is considered a favorable

35
meteorological condition because the plume does not
contribute to ground pollution.
4. Fumigation: here a stable layer of air lies a short
distance above the release point of the plume and the
unstable air layer lies below the plume .This unstable
layer of air causes the pollutant to mix down -wind toward
the ground in large lumps, but fortunately this condition is
usually of short duration lasting for about 30 minutes
Fumigation is favored by clear skies and light winds, and
it is more common in the summer seasons.
5. Lofting : The condition for lofting plume are the inverse of
those for fumigation , when the pollutants are emitted
above the inverse layer , they are dispersed vigorously on
the up ward direction since the top of the inversion layer
acts as a barrier to the movement of the pollutants
towards the ground .
6. Trapping: occurs when the plume effluent is caught
between two inversion layers. The diffusion of the effluent
is severely restricted to the unstable layer between the
two unstable layers.

36

37
PLUME DISPERSION
Dispersion is the process by which contaminants move
through the air and a plume spreads over a large area, thus
reducing the concentration of pollutants it contains. The plume
spreads both horizontally and vertically. If it is gaseous, the
motion of the molecules follows the low of gaseous diffusion
The most commonly used model for the dispersion of
gaseous air pollutants is the Gaussian, developed by Pasquill,
in which gases dispersed in the atmosphere are assumed to
exhibit idea gas behavior
2.6. The Gaussian plume model
The present tendency is to interpret dispersion data in terms
of the Gaussian model. The standard deviations are related to
the eddy diffusivities

Fig. Dispersion situation

Plume dispersion coordinate sysem, showing Gaussian distributions in
the horizontal and vertical directions (Turner, 1970)

38
(a) Ground level concentration
In this case Z=0
[ ]( )

A x y H
Q
y Zu
y
y
H
Z
, , , exp. .exp ( . ) 0
1
2
1
2
413
2
=

(b) Ground level center line concentration
In this case Z=0 and y=0
(c) When the emission source is at the ground level i.e. H=0

Q
y zu

( . ) 215

Estimation of z yand
The values of z yand have been shown to be related to the
diffusion coefficient in the y and z directions .As might be
expected, y and z are functions of down wind distance x
from the source as well as the atmospheric stability
conditions. Based on the experimental observation of the
dispersion of plumes, pasquill and Gifford have devised a
method for calculating, y and z of the spreading plume from
knowledge of the atmospheric stability. Six categories of the
atmospheric stability; A through F, were suggested and these
are shown in the table 2.1 as a function of wind and solar
radiation

39
y=Ax
0.903
--------------- (2.16)
z=Bx
p
------------------ (2.17)
Where: A, B, and P are constants
Table 2.2 stability categories
Wind speed (m/sec)
at z=10m
Day (incoming S. R.)
Strong Moderate Slight
Night (thin over cast)
> 4/8 cloud < 3/8 cloud
<2 A A-B B E F
2-3 A-B B C E F
3-5 B B-C C D E
5-6 C C-D D D D
>6 C D D D D

A: extremely unstable D: Neutral condition
B: Moderately unstable E: Slightly stable
C: Slightly unstable F: Moderately stable
Table 2.3 fitted value for y and z
Class A X1(meters) X<X1
B P
X2(meters) x1<x<x2
B P
A 0.4 250 O.125 1.03 500 0.00883 1.5
B 0.295 1000 0.119 0.986 1000 0.0579 1.09
C 0.2 1000 0.111 0.911 1000 0.111 0.911
D 0.13 1000 0.105 0.827 1000 0.392 0.636
E 0.098 1000 0.100 0.778 1000 0.373 0.587

40
Example 1
A coal burning electric generating plant emits 1.1 kg/ min. of
SO
2
from a stack with an effective height of 60m. On a thinly
over cast evening with a wind speed of 5 m/ sec. what is the
ground level concentration of SO
2
, 500m directly down wind
from the stack .

y =Ax
0.903
z = BX
P
= (0.13) x 500
0.90
= (0.105). (500)
0.827
= 35m = 18m
[ ]( )

=

2
2
1
exp . 60 , 0 , 5 . 0
z
H
zu y
Q
A

=
2
18
60
2
1
exp .
5 18 5 . 3
sec / 18
g

= 7.4g
Example 2
A chimney with a design stack height of 250 m s emitting SO2
at a rate of 500g/sec on a sunny day in June with moderate
wind speed at a stack altitude, the volumetric flow rate found
to be 265m3/sec. , with a wind speed of 6 m/sec: at 10 m
level .Estimate the concentration of SO2 down wind for the
following situations
(a) ( so2) (1000,0,0,250)

41
(b) ( so2) (1000,50,0,250)
(c) ( so2) (1000,50,20,250)
Solution
On a sunny day in June the incoming solar radiation will be
strong. Also, the air will be unstable. A moderate wind speed
at the stack altitude will be around 5-7 m/sec. Let us take u
-
=
6m/s. From equation 2.11 the velocity u1
-
at 10 m level can be
obtained:
u1=u (z1/H)
=0.25 unstable condition

6(110/250)
0.25

= 2.7 m/sec.
This shows that the surface wind speed is between 2 and 3
m/sec Reference to table 2.1 shows a stability class of A-B we
choose B as a conservative answer. The values of can be
calculated from the information given in table 2 at a distance
of 1000m
y = A.x
0.903
z = Bx
P

= 0.295(1000)
0.903
= 0.119(1000)
0.986
= 151m = 108m
(a)
[ ]( )
( )( )

=
2
6
108
250
2
1
exp
6 108 151
10 500
250 , 0 , 0 , 1000 2
x
so

=112g/m
3

42
(b)
[ ]( )

so
Q
y zu
y
y
H
z
2
2
2
1000500250
1
2
1
2
, , , .exp exp =

=
500 10
151108 6
1
2
50
151
1
2
250
108
6 2 2
x
. ( )
.exp .exp

= 106g/m
3

(c)
[ ] ( )
{

= =

2 2
2
2
1
exp
2
1
exp .
2
250 , 20 , 50 , 1000
z
H z
y
y
zu y
Q
So

+
exp.
+
1
2
2
z H
z

=113g/m
3

2.7. Plume rise
Generally, effluent plumes from the chimney stacks are
released in to the atmosphere at elevated temperatures. The
rise of the plume after release to the atmosphere is caused by
buoyancy and the vertical momentum of the effluent. Under
windless conditions, the plume rises vertically but more often
it is bent as a result of the wind that is usually present. This
rises of the plume adds to the stack an additional height H,
such that the height H of the virtual origin is obtained by
adding the term H, the plume rise, the actual height of the
stack, Hs. The plume center line height H = Hs +H is known
as the effective stack height and it is this height that is used in
the Gaussian plume calculations.

43
Plume rise
Estimation of plume rise
1. Buoyant plumes
In the case of buoyant plumes, the influence of buoyancy is
much greater than the influence of vertical momentum. Such
plumes are usually obtained when the release temperatures
are more than 50 c greater than ambient atmospheric
temperatures.
Hollands equation
) 18 . 2 ( . . 10 68 . 2 5 . 1
.
3

+ =

Ds
TS
Ta Ts
pa x
U
Ds Vs

Where: Vs = stack gas exit velocity, m/s
Pa = atmospheric pressure, mb
Ts = stack gas temperature, k
Ta =ambient air temperature
U
-
=wind speed, m/sec.
Ds = Diameter of stack out let, m
2. Plume rise under stable and calm conditions
When there is little or no wind, the bending of the plume is
negligible small and it rises to some height where the
buoyancy force is completely dissipated. The recommended
equation for such a situation is
=5F
1/4
. S
-3/8
------------------------------- (2.19)

44
F gvs
Ds Ts Ta
Ts
m
s
=

2
220
2
4
2
. , ( . )

S
g
Ta
dT
dZ
env x =

. ( . )
1
221
2

Where: F---is the buoyancy flux parameter
S---is the stability parameter
--- Degree of stability
For large volume of flow rates greater than 50m
3
/s
( )
( ) =
150 222
3
F
U
.

3. Non- buoyant plumes
For sources at temperature close to the ambient or less than
50 C above ambient and having exit speed of at least
10m/sec, the following equation can be used
=

Ds
Vs
U
14
223
.
( . )
Example
If in example 2, the stack diameter is 5 m, the so2 exit velocity
is 13.5 m/s, and the gas temperature of the exit is 145 C, what
is the plume rise for an ambient air temperature of 30 C?

45
Calculate the ground level concentration, on the plume center
line at the down wind distance of 1 km.
Solution
Flow rate = 265m3/s, which is far greater than 50m3/s
= 150
3
F
u

( )
( )
F =

98135
5
2
418 330
418
2
. .

=227m
4
/s
3

( )
=

150
227
6
3

=158 m
H = Hs+H
= 250 +158
= 408m
[ ]
( )
( )( )
so
x
2
6
2
100000408
500 10
151 108 6
1
2
408
108
, , .exp =

=1.3g/m
3
There is a significant reduction in the ground level
concentration as compared to the case for a zero plume rise,
where ( So
2
) (1000, 0, 0,250) =120g/m
3

46
CHAPTER THREE
SOURCES, TYPES OF AIR
POLLUTANTS AND THEIR EFFECTS
to:
1. Describe the Physiological effects of SO
2
and NO
x

2. Differentiate primary and secondary air pollutants.
3. Enumerate different types of physical forms of air
pollutants.
4. Understand the harmful effects of smog
The health effects of ambient air pollution have been difficult
to document with certainty until recent years. This is because
of methodological problems in assessing exposure, other
factors that cause respiratory disease (such as cigarette
smoking, respiratory tract infections, and allergies), and the
difficulty of studying such effects in large populations.
Recently, however, a series of highly sophisticated and
convincing studies from virtually every continent have
demonstrated that air pollution has a major effect on human
health.

47
Respiratory symptoms are the most common adverse health
effects from air pollution of all types. Table 1.1 presents a
summary of major health effects thought to be caused by
community air pollution. Respiratory effects of air pollution,
particularly complicating chronic bronchitis, may place an
additional strain on the heart as well.
3.3. Common condition to which air
pollution exposure may contribute
Air pollution is associated with increased risk of death from
heart disease and lung disease, even at levels below those
known to be acutely toxic to the heart. Mucosal irritation in the
form of acute or chronic bronchitis, nasal tickle, or
conjunctivitis is characteristic of high levels of air pollution,
although individuals vary considerably in their susceptibility to
such effects.
The eye irritation is particularly severe, in the setting of high
levels of particulates (which need to be in the respirable range
described and may be quite large soot particles) or of high
concentrations of photochemical oxidants and especially
aldehydes.
There is little evidence to suggest that community air pollution
is a significant cause of cancer except in unusual and extreme
cases. However, emissions from particular sources may be
cancer-causing. Examples of cancer associated with

48
community air pollution may include point-source emissions
from some smelters with poor controls that release arsenic,
which can cause lung cancer. Smoke from cigarettes is
generally much more highly carcinogenic than air pollution
could be.
Central nervous system effects, and possibly learning
disabilities in children, may result from accumulated body
burdens of lead, where air pollution contributes a large
fraction of exposure because of lead additives in gasoline.
Table 3.1: Examples of Common Conditions to Which Air
Pollution Exposure May Contribute
Disease or Howair pollution
condition may affect it Associated factors
Eye irritation Specific effect of photochemical Susceptibility differs
oxidants, Possibly aldehydes or
peroxyacetyl Nitrates; particulate
matter (fly ash) as a Foreign body
Acute bronchitis Direct irrigative effects of SO2, Cigarette smoking may
soot and Petrochemical pollution have a more than
Additive interaction
Chronic bronchitis Aggravation (increase in Cigarette smoking,
Frequency or Severity) of cough occupation
or sputum Associated with any
sort of pollution
Asthma Aggravation from respiratory usually pre-existing
irritation, Possibly on respiratory allergy
reflex basis or airway hyperactivity
Headache Carbon monoxide sufficient Smoking may also increase
To lead to more than 10% carboxyhaemoglobin but not
carboxyhaemoglobin Enough to lead to headache
Lead toxicity Add to body burden Close proximity to lead
source; Exposure at home

49
These health effects are better characterized for populations
than for individual patients. Establishing a relationship
between the symptoms of a particular patient and exposure to
air pollution is more difficult than interpreting the likely health
effects on an entire community.
It is important to understand that these pollutants are
seasonal in their pattern. Both ozone and sulfates, together
with ultra fine particulates, tend to occur together during the
summer months in most developed areas. Ozone, oxides of
nitrogen, aldehydes, and carbon monoxide tend to occur
together in association with traffic, especially in sunny
regions.
Some pollutants, such as radon, are only hazards indoors or
in a confined area. Others are present both indoors and
outdoors, with varying relative concentrations.
3.4. Types of pollutants
3.4.1 CONVENTIONAL
Sulfur Dioxide
Sulfur dioxide was a serious problem in air pollution in the
earliest days of industrialization. It has been the major
problem in reducing or acidifying air pollution during the
period of rapid economic growth in many countries. It was one

50
of the major components of the so-called London Fogs, which
had serious direct health effects as illustrated in Box 5.1.
In 1953, Amdur et al. studied the effects of sulfur dioxide on
humans and found that, at least in acute exposures,
concentrations of up to 8 ppm caused respiratory changes
that were dose dependent. (This is one of the first studies to
use physiological measurements as an indication of the
effects of air pollution.) Later studies revealed that the main
effect of sulfur dioxide is broncho constriction (closing of the
airways causing increased resistance to breathing) which is
dose dependent, rapid, and tended to peak at 10 minutes
(Folinsbee, 1992). Persons with asthma are particularly
susceptible and in fact asthmatics suffer more from the effects
of sulfur dioxide than does the general public. Persons with
asthma who exercise will typically experience symptoms at
0.5 ppm, depending on the individual.
Sulfate, the sulfur-containing ion present in water, remains a
major constituent of air pollution capable of forming acid.
Sulfate itself appears to be capable of triggering broncho
constriction in persons with airways reactivity and it is a major
constituent of ultrafine particulates. There are other acid
ingredients in air pollution, such as nitric acid, but less is know
about them. These acids, though, cause a phenomenon
known as acid rain, with their emission into the air by industry
and motor vehicles.

51
Because of their small size and tendency to ride along on
particulates, acid aerosols such as sulfur dioxide, sulfates and
nitrogen dioxide tend to deposit deeply in the distal lung and
airspace. They appear to provoke airways responses in an
additive or synergistic manner with ozone. They have also
been implicated in causing mortality in association with ultra
fine particulates.
SO
2
and sulfates are the principal chemical species that
cause acid precipitation. They may be transported long
distances in the atmosphere away from their source and
result in acidification of water and soils.

BOX 5.1: London Fog
On December 5, 1952, a phenomenon known as a
temperature inversion occurred in the atmosphere, in London,
England. This resulted in a dense fog forming in the center of
the city of London. (During a temperature inversion very little
air movement occurs, and air, including the particle matter
and other pollutants it contains, gets trapped in a given
location. Suspended matter in the air can provide nuclei on
which particles of moisture and other pollutants, such as
acids, are deposited.)
During this time, the temperature hovered around 0 degrees
Celsius. The burning of fossil fuels (coal) in open earth fires in

52
homes, in the industrial generation of electricity, and the
emissions from transportation vehicles contributed to the
atmospheric pollution. Measurements for total suspended
matter (TSM) and sulfur dioxide were routinely made in both
central and peripheral London during this time. During 6-8
December 1952, daily averages from all monitoring points
increased about five-fold to 1.6 mg/m
3
. Peak values were 3 to
10 times the normal values, and were highest in central
London. In comparison, the mean December 1957
concentration for TSM was in the range of 0.12 to 0.44 mg/m
3
.
The demand for hospital beds increased on December 8, and
the Central London hospitals issued an Emergency Bed
Warning that they had sufficient beds for fewer than 85% of
applicants. The mortality rate in certain parts of London
increased dramatically during this time. The major causes of
death were due to a variety of respiratory related illnesses,
cardiac illness and ill-defined illnesses. In addition, many
animals (e.g. cattle) had to be slaughtered because of illness
during this time, likely because of the fog.

53
0
20
40
60
80
100
nov. 8 nov.
15
nov.
22
nov.
29
dec. 8 dec.
13
dec.
20
dec.27 jan. 3 jan.10
Figure 1: Deaths in London Administration County and
the Outer Ring by Weeks.
November 1952 10 June 1953

Based on the epidemiological data collected during the
London smog episodes, it was felt at the time that the
increased number of deaths in London during the fog was
more closely related to the particulate matter in the air, rather
than the SO
2
. A reanalysis later, though, suggested that the
acid aerosols (e.g. sulfur dioxide) was the major factor in
causing the increased mortality.

Adapted by A. Morham; from Kjellstrom and Hicks, 1991

54
Nitrogen Dioxide
Nitric oxide (NO) is produced by combustion. Nitrogen dioxide
(NO
2
), which has greater health effects, is a secondary
pollutant created by the oxidation of NO under conditions of
sunlight, or may be formed directly by higher temperature
combustion in power plants or indoors from gas stoves.
Levels of exposure to nitrogen dioxide that should not be
exceeded (WHO guideline levels) are respectively 400 g/m
3

(0.21 parts per million (ppm) for one hour and 150 g/m
3
(0.08
ppm) for 24 hours (WHO, 1987a).
The direct effects of nitrogen oxide include increased
infectious lower respiratory disease in children (including long-
term exposure as in houses with gas stoves) and increased
asthmatic problems. Extensive studies of the oxides of
nitrogen have shown that they impair host defenses in the
respiratory tract, increasing the incidence and severity of
bacterial infections after exposure. They have a marked effect
in reducing the capacity of the lung to clear particles and
bacteria.
NO
2
also provokes broncho-constriction and asthma in much
the same way as ozone but it is less potent than ozone in
causing asthmatic effects.
Despite decades of research, however, the full effects of NO
2

are not known. Known human health effects are summarized

55
in Table 2.3. Other effects are known but difficult to evaluate.
For example, NO has a major effect on blood distribution in
the lungs. In animals, it has been shown that exposure to NO
2

makes metastases to the lung from cancer elsewhere in the
body much more likely, although NO
2
does not itself cause
cancer. These unusual effects are difficult to interpret and
understand.
NO
2
is also a significant contributor to acid precipitation.

Table :- 3.2. Potential Human Effects of Nitrogen Dioxide

Health Effect Mechanism

Increased incidence of respiratory infections Reduced efficacy of lung defenses
Increased severity of respiratory infections Reduced efficacy of lung defenses
Respiratory symptoms Airways injury
Reduced lung function Airways and possibly alveolar injury
Worsening of the clinical status of persons
with asthma, Chronic obstructive pulmonary
diseases or other chronic Respiratory conditions Airways injury

Source: Samet and Utell, 1990

56
Particulates matter
Particle matter in the air (aerosols) is associated with an
elevated risk of mortality and morbidity (including cough and
bronchitis), especially among populations such as asthmatics
and the elderly. As indicated, they are released from
fireplaces, wood and coal stoves, tobacco smoke, diesel and
automotive exhaust, and other sources of combustion. The
US Environmental protection Agency (EPA) sets a standard of
265 g/m
3
in ambient air, but does not have a standard for
indoor air levels. Usual concentrations range from 500 g/m
3

in bars and waiting rooms to about 50 g/m
3
in homes
(Brooks et al., 1995). In developed countries, tobacco smoke
is the primary contributor to respirable particles indoors.
Particulate matter (PM 10)
Larger particulates, which are included in PM
10
(particulates
10 m and smaller) consist mostly of carbon-containing
material and are produced from combustion; some fraction of
these are produced by wind blowing soil into the air. These
larger particulates do not seem to have as much effect on
human health as the smaller particulates.
Particulate matter (PM 2.5)
In recent years we have learned a great deal about the health
effects of particles. As noted above, particulates in urban air
pollution that are extremely small, below 2.5 m in diameter,

57
are different in their chemical composition than larger
particles. Particulates in the fraction PM
2.5
(2.5 m and below)
contain a proportionately larger amount of water and acid-
forming chemicals such as sulfate and nitrate, as well as trace
metals. These smaller particulates penetrate easily and
completely into buildings and are relatively evenly dispersed
throughout urban regions where they are produced. Unlike
other air contaminants that vary in concentration from place to
place within an area, PM
2.5
tends to be rather uniformly
distributed.
PM
2.5
sulfate and ozone cannot be easily separated because
they tend to occur together in urban air pollution. Recent
research strongly suggests that at least PM
2.5
and sulfate, and
probably ozone as well, cause an increase in deaths in
affected cities. The higher the air pollution levels for these
specific contaminants, the more excess deaths seem to occur
on any given day, above the levels that would be expected for
the weather and the time of year. Likewise, accounting for the
time of the year and the weather, there are more hospital
admissions for various conditions when these contaminants
are high. Ozone, particularly, is linked with episodes of
asthma, but all three seem to be associated with higher rates
of deaths from and complaints about lung disease and heart
disease. It is not yet known which is the predominant factor in
the cause of these health effects, and some combination of
each may be responsible for some effects.

58
Although the effect of air pollution is clearly present in the
statistics, air pollution at levels common in developed
countries is probably much less of a factor in deaths and
hospital admissions than the weather, cigarette smoking,
allergies, and viral infections. However, the populations
exposed to air pollution are very large, and even if only 5% of
all excess deaths during a one-week period are related to air
pollution in a major city, a reasonable estimate, this means
that thousands of deaths could be prevented. One
unexpected finding of this research is that the effect of
particulate air pollution on deaths and hospital admissions is
continuous from high levels to low levels of exposure. In other
words, there is no obvious level below which the public is
clearly protected, and even at low levels of air pollution, some
excess deaths still seem to occur. At first, it was thought that
these deaths represented sick people who would soon die
anyway. If this were true, one would expect there to be fewer
deaths than expected when air pollution levels returned to
normal or below normal, but a careful study of the death rate
during and just after periods of high air pollution levels does
not seem to show this.
At the much greater levels encountered in many developing
countries, the effect is likely to be proportionately greater.
There are many factors at work that complicate such studies
in developing countries. The very high rates of respiratory
disease during the winter among even non smokers in some

59
northern Chinese cities, for example, has been attributed to
air pollution and this is likely to be true, however, cigarette
smoking, indoor air pollution from coal-fired stoves, crowded
conditions and the risk of viral infections may also be
important factors.
There remains much more work to do to understand this
problem, but the essential message seems clear: at any level,
particulate air pollution and possibly ozone are associated
with deaths, and both are clearly associated with hospital
admissions and health risks.

60

T
Y
P
E
s

o
f

p
a
r
t
i
c
l
e
s

d
e
p
o
s
i
t
e
d
Metallurgical dust and fumes

Smelter dusts and fumes

Ammonium
chloride
fumes

Foundry dust

Sulfuric acid
mist

Cement dust

Pulverized coal

Insecticide
dusts
Plant
spores

Bacteria

Pollens

Tobacco smoke

Oil smoke

Fly ash
0.01 0.005 0.01 0.05 0.1 0.5 1 5 10 50 100 500 1000
Particle size (m) Source: Adapted from Levy and Wegman, 1988
Figure 2: Range of particle diameters from airborne dusts and fumes. Adapted from
Levy and Wegman, 1988, with permission.

61
Hydrocarbons
Most hydrocarbons such as aliphatic and salicylic
hydrocarbons are generally biochemical inert at ambient
levels and thus present little hazards. Aromatic hydrocarbon
such, on the other hand are biochemical and biologically
active are more irritating to mucous membranes compounds
like benzo(a) Pyrene are known to be potent carcinogens.
HCs are included among the criteria air pollutants, chiefly
because of their role as catalysts in the formation of
photochemical smog.
Lead
Lead is the best studied of these trace metals. It is known to
be a highly toxic substance that particularly causes nerve
damage. In children, this can result in learning disabilities and
neurobehavioral problems. An estimated 80 90% of lead in
ambient air is thought to be derived from the combustion of
leaded petrol. Due to its effects on the behavior and learning
abilities of children even at low levels of exposure, efforts
throughout the world are directed at removing lead from
gasoline. The WHO guidelines value for long-term exposure
to lead in the air is 0.5 1.0 g/m
3
/year (WHO, 1987a).

62
3.4.2 NON-CONVENTIONAL
Asbestos
Asbestos is a mineral fiber that has been used as insulation
and as fire retardant in buildings. Many asbestos products
have been banned, and its use is now limited. But in older
buildings asbestos is still found in pipe and furnace insulation,
asbestos shingles, floor tiles, textured paints, and other
construction materials. If these materials are disturbed cutting,
sanding or other activities, excessive air borne asbestos
levels can occur. Improper attempts to remove these
materials can also release asbestos fibers in to the indoor air.
As a guide line, average asbestos levels should not exceed
0.1 fibers/ML for fibers longer than 5m.
Health effects
Asbestosis(lung scaring)
Mesothelioma (cancer of the lung and the
abdominal lining)
Lung cancer
Mercury
It is present in gaseous form in the atm. because of its
relatively high vapor pressure. The gaseous mercury is
washed from the air by rain a portion of it enters the aquatic
system and the remaining is bound to the soil over the land. In

63
both cases the inorganic mercury is generally concurred in to
its methyl or diethyl cpds by the action of bacteria.
Beryllium
Most beryllium emissions are in the form of metallic powder of
beryllium oxide particulate. A chronic condition brown as
berylliosis is thought to be caused by beryllium concentration
as low as 0.01 to 0.1g/m
3
. It is systematic poisoning which
starts with progressive;
Shortness of breaths
Weight loss
Cough
Cardiac failure
Fluorides
Vegetation damage attributed to atmospheric fluoride has
been accused from:
Copper smelters
Super phosphate
Glass and enamel factories
Aluminum plants
Hydrogen (fluoride manufactory plant
Animal may develop fluorites (accumulation in bone) could
results in
Lameness
Loss of weight
Dental flour sis

64
Ozone
Ozone is a highly reactive compound that irritates airways in
the lungs and interferes with host defense mechanisms in the
body. It also has an unusual effect on breathing patterns as
the result of changes in the reflex breathing mechanism.
In the lower atmosphere, oxygen, with light from the sun as a
source of energy, reacts with nitrogen compounds and volatile
hydrocarbons to create ozone. This occurs especially in
stagnant weather conditions and inversions under conditions
of sunshine, where there is ample time for the photochemical
reactions to take place. Ozone is chemically unstable, and will
react with a variety of substances.
The way in which ozone affects humans appears to be
complicated, and dependent on activity level and pollutant
concentration, among other factors. Ozone appears to attack
the epithelial cells in the bronchial tree, which in turn may
cause airway inflammation and hyper responsiveness in the
first place, although this has been hard to prove.
The WHO guidelines are 150200 g/m
3
(0.0760.1 ppm) for
one hour exposure and 100200 g/m
3
(0.05-0.06 ppm) for 8
hour exposures (WHO, 1987a).

65
Physical Forms of Pollutants
The constituents of air pollution may exist in any of the three
phases of matter; they may be solid, liquid or gas. Often all
three are present at once, especially in very small
particulates.
Aerosols
Small solid or liquid particles (fine drops or droplets) that are
suspended in air are called aerosols. Aerosols in air pollution
are complex systems. They often consist of a mixture of solid-
phase particles, combined solid- and liquid-phase particles,
and sometimes liquid droplets. Even aerosols that are
predominantly solid may contain absorbed water.
The most important characteristic that predicts the behavior of
aerosols are size and composition. Size predicts how the
particle will travel in air and composition determines what will
happen when it settles or lands on something. Small particles
are called particulates.
The individual particles in aerosols may be relatively uniform
in size (monodispersed) or highly variable in size
(polydispersed). Aerosols in air pollution are all
polydispersed. Fumes are polydispersed fine aerosols
consisting of solid particles that often aggregate together, so
that many little particulates may form one big particle.

66
The effects that will be seen from a particular aerosol depend
on how many of the particles there are of a particular size.
Size is also related to mass; the smaller the particle, the less
mass. In all polydispersed aerosols, the greatest number of
particles will be small but together they will account for only a
small fraction of the total mass; the larger particles will be
much fewer but will carry most of the mass.
This means that air pollution includes solid-phase particles
and sometimes droplets in a range of sizes, some of which
will behave one way and others behave differently. Larger
particles are kept up in the air by winds and local air
movement and have a tendency to settle out by the effect of
gravity if the air is very quiet. The smaller particles are kept up
in the air by the movement of molecules in air (which is heat),
a phenomenon called Brownian movement.
Size also relates to composition. Particles are generated with
different dispersions depending on the source. The
composition of particles of a given size, therefore, will depend
on the local sources and their relative contribution to the
aerosol in local air pollution. Large particles are most often the
result of blowing dust or soot as the result of combustion.
These particles are largely solid but may contain adsorbed
gases or liquid on the surface. Smaller particles are mostly
caused by certain types of combustion, associated with diesel
exhausts, power plants, and other forms of rapid, hot

67
combustion. These small particles generally consist of a
matrix of carbonaceous compound, some water, and
dissolved or absorbed or solid-phase sulfate, nitrate, and
trace metals. They may form from nitrates and sulfates in the
air coming together in a solid form. They have different effects
on the body than larger particles and are considered more
toxic. The composition of an aerosol also determines the
chemical reactivity of its individual particles and their density.
From the human health perspective, however, the most
important aspect of particle size relates to how a particle
behaves in the respiratory tract. In discussions of health, a
special measure of size is used that is different than the
actual measurement of the particle. It is called the
aerodynamic diameter and it more reflects the behaviour of
a particle than a physical measurement would. The
aerodynamic diameter is the diameter of a sphere that would
settle at the same velocity as the particle in question. This
measure allows one to compare particles that are different in
shape or density or mass. From this point on in the text,
references to the size of particles will refer to the aerodynamic
diameter expressed in micrometers (m). Larger particles
have more mass, therefore more inertia, and are therefore
less likely to make it through the twists and turns of the
human respiratory tract.

68
The effect of particulates on the body reflects the efficiency
with which they penetrate all the way to and within the lung
and their chemical reactivity and toxicity once they arrive.
Larger particles carry much more substance but are much
less likely to cause an effect on the body because they do not
penetrate into the lower respiratory tract (below the first
division of the windpipe, or trachea). The largest particles -
visible to the naked eye as specks of dust, are mostly filtered
out in the nose. Particles above 100 m may be sources of
irritation to the mucous membranes of the eyes, nose, and
throat but they do not get much further. Those particles below
this cut-off are called the inhalable fraction because they
can be inhaled into the respiratory throat (trachea). Those
particles below 20 m generally do not enter the lower
respiratory tract, below the throat (trachea). Those particles
below 20 m are called the thoracic fraction because they
can penetrate into the lungs. Particles below 10 m enter the
airways with greatest efficiency and may be deposited in the
alveoli, or air spaces, that are the deepest structures of the
lungs. Notwithstanding the efficiency of penetration, particles
smaller than about 0.1 m tend to remain suspended in air
and to be breathed out again. Thus, as a practical matter the
greatest penetration and retention of particles is in the range
10.0 to 0.1 m, which is called the respirable range. These
patterns of deposition are shown graphically in Figure 2.

69
Once in the lung, particles may have different effects
depending on their size. Particles predominantly in the size
range between 10 and 20 m are more likely to show effects
on the airways. A large proportion of particles below 10 m
but above 0.1 m may be retained in the lungs. When they
accumulate to large numbers and the lung responds to their
presence, they may cause a type of disease called
pneumoconiosis; this is seen in high exposures in
occupational settings, not as a consequence of ambient air
pollution.
In air quality studies, the total aerosol suspended in air is
measured as Total Suspended Particulates (TSP). This
measurement of what are sometimes also called coarse
aerosols is not very useful except that as a measurement it
reflects the perception of haze in the air and diminished
visibility. Particulate matter of 10 m and smaller is called
PM
10
or fine aerosols, and corresponds for the most part with
the respirable range. Particulate matter of 2.5 m and below
is called PM
2.5
, and is the most important fraction from the
standpoint of health. Particles below PM
0.5
are called
ultrafines; their role in health has yet to be defined.

70

Reprinted from Newman, 1992
Figure 2: Deposition of Dust particles by size
Although it is disregarded for purposes of measuring the size
of the particle, shape is important in determining the effects of
a particle. The human body handles longer and thinner
particles, which are called fibers, differently from particles
that are more rounded in shape. Fibers are more difficult to
remove from the lungs by natural protective mechanisms.
There is also good evidence that the very long and thin shape
of fibers of asbestos plays an important role in the damage it
can cause in the lung.
Liquid phase
Liquid constituents of air pollution exist as aerosols, either as
liquid-phase particles, which are droplets, or in association

71
with solid-phase particles. Liquids that are constituents of air
pollution are always aqueous, or water-based, because
droplets of more volatile organic compounds evaporate to the
gaseous phase very quickly. A cloud or dense collection of
droplets is called a mist.
Small solid-phase particles also contain a small amount of
absorbed water. Both liquid and gas-phase constituents of air
pollution often are attracted to and ride on the surface of solid
particles; this is called adsorption (not to be confused with
absorption, in which the liquid or gas is actually taken into the
particle).
The humidity in the atmosphere is an important determinant of
the water content of particles; the lower the humidity, the
faster the water dries out and the particle is reduced to a solid
phase. Dry particles may take on water when they are
released into a humid atmosphere. Small particles typically
absorb large amounts of water if it is available in the
atmosphere; they are said to be hygroscopic. This adds
mass to the particle and may increase its capacity to carry
other dissolved constituents. Air pollution from the same types
of sources may therefore be different in humid climates and
dry climates.
There are processes in the atmosphere that convert liquid to
gas and back again or over convert liquid to solid. Volatile
liquids may evaporate to become gases. The evaporated

72
compound in the gas phase is called a vapor and behaves
like a gas in air pollution. Droplets may also form from
condensation of vapor in a saturated atmosphere. Fog is a
familiar example of an aerosol of liquid water droplets that
forms from condensation in an atmosphere saturated with
liquid around a small solid particle. In coastal areas, the
droplets of seawater may evaporate to form solid-phase
particulates that contain salt.
Precipitation, in the form of rain and snow, reduced air
pollution by dissolving soluble gases and by attracting and
holding small airborne particles, bringing them down to the
ground. The air may then be much cleaner but the
constituents of air pollution in the rainwater or snow may
present a serious problem. Acid-forming compounds, such as
sulfates and oxides of nitrogen, may change the balance of
pH in lakes and soils.
Gas phase
Gaseous constituents of air pollution are dissolved in air. The
properties of greatest importance in considering gaseous
constituents of air pollution are solubility in water and
chemical reactivity.
At concentrations found in air pollution, solubility is a major
determining factor of the health effects of gases. Relatively
soluble constituents of air pollution include sulfates, nitrates

73
and sulfur dioxide. They may also coalesce to form ultra fine
particles. (In addition, there are a number of gases more
common as occupational exposures that are water-soluble,
including hydrochloric acid vapor, and ammonia). Relatively
insoluble constituents include the oxides of nitrogen and
ozone. (Likewise, relatively insoluble occupational exposures
include these and also phosgene, chlorine, and nitrogen
dioxide.)
Solubility for gases is much like size for particles; it is a
characteristic that determines the efficiency with which they
penetrate deeply into the respiratory tract. A gas that is
soluble in water will be dissolved in the water coating the
mucous membrane of the lungs and upper respiratory tract
and will be removed from air passing more deeply. A gas that
is insoluble in water will not be so removed and will penetrate
to the alveoli, the deepest structures of the lung, more
efficiently. However, for gases at concentrations typical of
ambient air pollution, penetration to the alveoli is not as
significant as it may be for particles.
Gases that are reactive, such as ozone, tend to have their
major effects on the airways rather than the alveoli even if
they are relatively insoluble, except at very high
concentrations. They may irritate the walls of the airway and
cause bronchitis or induce asthmatic attacks, for example.
Occupational exposures to toxic gases, or uncontrolled

74
releases during an industrial emergency, may expose workers
or local residents to much higher concentrations than they
would experience in ambient air pollution. In such cases the
effects are correspondingly severe and may result in serious
toxic effects at the alveolar level, such as pulmonary edema,
a condition in which the damage to the lungs allows the
accumulation of fluid in the lungs similar to drowning. In this
situation the solubility of the gas is critically important as a
determinant of toxicity.
As mentioned above, many gases, including ozone and sulfur
dioxide, adsorb onto the surface of particulates and penetrate
deeply into the respiratory tract in this way. When that
happens the effects may be different and greater than
exposure to either the particulate or the gas alone.
Inhalation
Inhalation of toxicants presents the most rapid avenue of
entry into the body because of the intimate association of air
passages in the lungs with the circulatory system. On
inhalation, soluble gases tend to dissolve into the water
surface of the pulmonary tract; insoluble gases generally
penetrate to the alveolar level. Because the alveolus brings
the blood into very close and direct proximity to air, gases
may pass directly across the alveolar membrane and into the
bloodstream very efficiently. Particles, once deposited in the
alveoli, may dissolve and release their constituent

75
compounds. The degree to which they enter the blood and
are circulated and are then delivered to the bodys tissues
depends on the concentration inhaled, duration of exposure,
solubility in blood and tissue, reactivity of the compound and
the respiratory rate. (The respiratory rate determines how
much air is breathed in and therefore the total amount taken
into the body.) To understand the health problems associated
with airborne contaminants it is essential to have at least a
basic understanding of the structure and function of the
respiratory tract.
Anything that decreases the partial pressure of oxygen in the
alveoli reduces the oxygen available for exchange and,
therefore, has an asphyxiating effect. At high altitude, the
partial pressure of oxygen in alveoli air decreases, reducing
the saturation of blood with oxygen. Substances that dilute or
displace the oxygen in air without any other effect are simple
asphyxiants. Examples include carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide,
nitrogen or hydrocarbons such as natural gas. Compounds
that block the transfer of oxygen to the tissues or the
utilization of oxygen once it reaches the tissues are called
chemical asphyxiants. The two most common examples of
such inhibitors of oxygen uptake or utilization are carbon
monoxide (CO), which blocks the site on hemoglobin that
binds and transports oxygen and hydrogen cyanide (HCN),
which (in the form of cyanide) blocks the pathway by which
the tissues utilize oxygen. Carbon monoxide is particularly

76
common place as a product of incomplete combustion of fuels
(such as in automobile exhaust or open-flame heaters) and is
especially dangerous because of its lack of an odor to give
warning of exposure.
Chemical agents that irritate the lung may also impair oxygen
uptake by different means. Irritants may inflame the
respiratory tract, causing bronchitis or provoking an asthmatic
attack, or causing the lungs to be filled with fluid (pulmonary
edema), a process much like drowning. Usually the more
highly water soluble the compounds, the higher in the
respiratory tract they exert their effect.
Unlike many toxic substances that are ingested, inhaled
compounds are not significantly metabolized prior to
circulation throughout the body. They may therefore have a
direct and immediate effect, not unlike direct injection into the
bloodstream.
Volatile Organic Compounds
Volatile Organic Compounds (VOC) includes benzene,
chloroform, methanol, carbon tetrachloride and formaldehyde
among hundreds of other compounds. Gasoline is a mixture
of many such compounds. In the past two decades some 261
VOCs have been detected in ambient air. While the majority
of these chemicals occur in the environment at very low
levels, some of these VOCs are highly reactive. Like nitrogen

77
compounds, they cause indirect effects (such as helping to
create ozone) as well as having direct human physiological
effects. They may originate from household products such as
painting supplies, dry cleaning establishments, refineries,
gasoline stations and many other sources. They can cause
irritation to the respiratory tract (from increased rhinitis, or
runny nose, to asthma) as well as headaches and other non-
specific complaints. At high concentrations, they have
markedly toxic effects, some of which vary by compound, but
which include neurological effects in all cases. Direct toxicity
from VOCs is primarily an indoor air pollution problem and an
occupational hazard, as levels indoors and in the workplace
can reach many times that of outdoor levels.
Trace Metals
The trace metals include cadmium, mercury, zinc, copper,
lead, and a dozen others. They are called trace elements
because they are present in the environment or body only in
small amounts. Human activity has led to the increase in
release of these elements into the environment. Trace metals
may have direct health effects on the nervous and respiratory
systems.

78
3.5. Magnitude and Sources of Ambient
Air Pollution
Exposure to air pollution is part of urban living throughout the
world. Over the past 20 years there has been a shift in the
type of air pollution affecting developed countries, as the
traditional pollutants from stationary sources (such as SO
2

and suspended particulate matter [SPM]) have been
effectively controlled by the implementation and enforcement
of legislation in many developed countries. Also, a change
from domestic coal burning to electricity and natural gas for
heating and cooking purposes has lead to a lower level of
emissions of SO
2
and SPM with a concomitant improvement
in air quality. However, further economic development (and
increasing personal wealth) has resulted in increase in
industrial emissions, and especially in motor vehicle traffic.
This in turn, has led to increases in pollutants associated with
motor vehicle transport; most notably NOx, carbon monoxide
and hydrocarbons, as well as ozone and other photochemical
oxidants and lead in many jurisdictions (see Box 3. for more
on motor vehicle air pollution). Attempts to control emissions,
primarily through the introduction of catalytic converters and
more fuel efficient engines, have largely been outstripped by
growth in motor vehicle traffic (see Mage and Zali, 1992).
Meanwhile, in many developing countries, rapid urbanization
has resulted in a duplication of many of the problems faced by

79
developed countries, remain high. In addition, rapid economic
development has meant emissions from industry and
motorized vehicles are increasingly causing air quality
problems.
Urban environments generate their own microclimates
(especially mega cities), which cause special problems. Air
pollution trapped in urban areas by stagnant air, especially in
a valley, may accumulate and may undergo chemical
reactions that change its character. Some of the most severe
situations of air pollution are in these world megacdities, such
as Mexico City and Sao Paulo (Brazil), and in cities in the
developing world, such as shenyang (China). Also, many
heated buildings can create a difference in ambient air
temperature between urban and rural environments. This in
turn can contribute to temperature inversions (a phenomenon
with multiple causal factors which prevents warm air from
rising. This leads to a concentration of air pollution, as noted
earlier). People examining, and attempting to control
urbanization must take these difficulties into consideration.
For the United States in 1989, approximate percentages of
sources for some of the pollutants are indicated in Table 8
and for Sao Paulo in Table 9. It can be seen that in both
situations, transportation and industry are the major sources
of pollutants.

80
Table 3.3: Sources of Pollutant Emissions, United States, 1989
Particulate Sulfur Carbon Nitrogen Volatile
Matter Oxides Monoxide Oxides Organic
Transportation 25% 4% 66% 40% 35%
Fuel consumption 22% 80% 13% 56% 5%
Industrial 39% 16% 8% 3% 44%
Solid wastes 3% 0% 3% 1% 3%
Miscellaneous 12% 0% 11% 1% 14%
Source: Statistics Canada, 1994

81
Table 3.4: Major types of occupational pulmonary disease
Pathophysiolog
process
Occupational
disease
example
Clinical history Physical
examination
Chest x-ray Pulmonary
function
pattern
Fibrosis

Reversible airway
obstruction
(asthma)

Emphysema

Granulomas

Pulmonary
edema

Silicosis

Asbestosis

Byssinosis,
isocyanate
asthma

Cadmium
poisoning
(chronic)

Beryllium
disease

Smoke
inhalation
Dyspnea on
exertion,
shortness of
breath

Dyspnea on
exertion,
shortness of
breath

Cough, wheeze,
chest tightness,
shortness of
breath, asthma
attacks

Cough, sputum,
dyspnea

Cough, weight
loss, shortness of
breath

Frothy, bloody
sputum
production
Clubbing,
cyanosis

Clubbing,
cyanosis,
rales

Respiratory
rate, wheeze

Respiratory
rate
expiratory
phase

Respiratory
rate

Coarse,
bubble rales
Nodules

Linear
densities,
pleural
plawues,
calcifications

Usually
normal

Hyperaeration
bullae

Small nodules

Hazy, diffuse
air-space
disease
Restrictive or
mixed
obstructive and
restrictive
DLCO normal
or decreased

Normal or
obstructive with
bronchodilator
improvement
Normal or high
DLCO

Obstructive low
DLCO

Usually
restrictive with
low DLCO

Usually
restrictive with
decreased
DLCO,
hypoxemia at
rest

DLCO= diffusing capacity; = increased.

82
Table 3.5: Common air pollutants, their sources and
pathological effects on man
Ser.
No.
Pollutants Where they come from Pathological effect on man
1 Aldehydes Thermal decomposition of fats,
oil or glycerol
Irritant nasal and respirator tract
2 Ammonia Chemical processes dye-
making; explosives; lacquer;
fertilizer
Inflame upper respiratory
passages
3 Arsine Processes involving metals or
acids containing arsenic
soldering
Break down red cells in blood,
damage kidneys, cause jaundice
4 Carbon
monoxide
Gasoline motor exhausts;
burning of coal
Reduce oxygen-carrying capacity
of blood
5 Chlorine Reach cotton and flour; many
others chemical processes
Attack entire respiratory tract and
mucous membranes of eyes;
cause pulmonary edema
6 Hydrogen Fumigation; blast furnaces;
chemical manufacturing; metal
planting
Interfere with nerve cells; produce
dry throat, indistinct vision,
headache
7 Hydrogen
fluoride
Petroleum refining glass
etching; aluminum and
fertilizer production
Irritate and corrode all body
passages
8 Hydrogen
sulphide
Refineries and chemical
industries; bituminous fuels
Smell like rotten eggs; cause
nausea; irritate eyes and throat.
9 Nitrogen oxide Motor vehicle exhausts; soft
coal.
Inhibit cilia action so that soot and
dust penetrate far in to the lungs
10 Phosgene
(carbonyl)
chloride
Chemical and dye
manufacturing
Induce coughing, irritation, and
sometimes and fatal pulmonary
edema
11 Sulphur dioxide Coal and oil combustion Cause chest construction,
headache, vomiting and death
from respiratory ailments
12 Suspended
particles (ash,
soot, smoke)
Incinerators; almost any
manufacture
Cause emphysema, eye irritants
and possibly cancer

83
Study Exercise
Consider the implications of particulates and gaseous
constituents of: 1) wood smoke, 2) cigarette smoke, 3)
automobile exhaust, 4) emissions from a coal-fired power
plant.
Which has the most pollutants of air pollution matter?
Which is predominantly gas? Which is most complicated
chemically? Which is likely to be most dangerous?
Explain the effects of SO
2
on man?
Describe the harmful effects of NO
2
on living things and
the environment?
Define Aerosol, dust and smoke?
Describe the toxicological effects of CO in blood?

84
CHAPTER FOUR
INDUSTRIAL AIR POLLUTION
to:
1. Describe industrial air pollution
2. Enumerate common industrial air pollutants and their
sources.
3. Identify health effects of air pollutants on Man.
4. Explain industrial air pollution accidents.
Industrial air pollution occurs as the result of the release of
pollutants (called emissions) into the atmosphere. The
pollutants mix in air and are diluted but may travel long
distances on slow, steady winds if an industrial chimney is tall
enough to propel them high into the atmosphere. It is a
fundamental problem of air pollution science that pollutant
concentrations are exceedingly difficult to measure
accurately.

85
4.3. Types of Industrial Air Pollutants
There are three general types of industrial air pollution as
defined by their different chemical characteristics, distribution,
and sources (outlined in Table 6). Reducing air pollution is
caused by the emission of sulfur dioxide (SO
2
) and
particulates, substances that are chemical reducing agents in
the atmosphere. This is by far the oldest type of air pollution.
Emissions of SO
2
are caused by burning fossil fuels mining
coal containing some sulfur, emissions of particulates occur
most heavily when combustion is inefficient. Reducing air
pollution is produced primarily by stationary combustion
sources, such as fossil fueled power plants, industrial
furnaces and steel mills. This type of air pollution has
predominated in older basic industry.

86
Table 4.1: Types of Air Pollution by Chemical
Characteristics and Source
Type Composition Source
Reducing Sulfur dioxide, particulates. Stationary combustion
sources, Such as fossil fuel
power plants, industrial
furnaces, home heating
units.
Photochemical Hydrocarbons and nitric Mobileemissions
oxide emitted by sources such as
internal combustion engine undergo
automobiles, fossil fuel power Complex
photochemical reactions in the plants
and oil refineries. Presence of sunlight,
resulting in an atmosphere with significant
concentrations of ozone, nitrogen dioxide,
aldehydes, and organic nitrates.
Point Source Specific to source of emission, e.g. lead
Specific industries; near a smelter. Industrial or
transportation
accidents.
___________________________________________________________________
Photochemical air pollution, much newer in human history,
results from complicated chemical reactions in the
atmosphere that are driven by the energy in sunlight. In
photochemical smog, emissions rich in oxides of nitrogen and
hydrocarbons undergo reactions to produce ozone, specific

87
compounds of nitrogen and aldehydes -all of which are highly
reactive and chemically oxidizing. This type of smog is caused
primarily by automobile traffic, to which are added emissions
from mobile sources, such as hydrocarbons from gasoline
and dry cleaning solvents and oxides of nitrogen from power
plants. Many cities have been able to bring reducing air
pollution under control. However, as automotive traffic has
increased worldwide, photochemical smog has emerged as a
problem.
A third type of industrial air pollution is point-source
emissions. This type affects the immediate vicinity of the
plant, but does not usually involve atmospheric reactions to
any great extent. Examples include lead in the vicinity of a
smelter, hydrogen sulfide from a sewer gas well, pesticides
from agricultural application, and concentrated fumes from a
spill or tank rupture. Such emissions are frequently the result
of accidents, particularly related to transporting hazardous
substances by truck or train. Chemicals that are not regulated
under usual air quality standards are often called air toxics.
4.4. Air Pollution from Industrial Accidents
Industrial activities or accidents may release a relatively large
quantity of a particular type of air pollution that becomes a
local problem. Severe episodes that have been well
documented include one in Belgium in 1930 (Meuse Valley),

88
one in the US in 1948 (Donora, Pennsylvania), one in Mexico
in 1950 (Poza Rica), two in England in 1952 and 1962 (both in
London see Box 1.), and one in India in 1984 (Bhopal). The
Bhopal incident is presented in Box 2.

89
BOX 2.
Bhopal A Case Study of an International Disaster
Argualbly, the worlds worst industrial cataclysm occurred on 2 December 1984 at the
Union Carbide Plant in Bhopal, India, where a release of a gas cloud of
methylisocyanate killed over 3800 people.
With respect to the historical facts leading up to the disaster, it is noteworthy that the
post-World War II era witnessed a dramatic world-wide increase in the production of
organic chemicals. The application of pesticides in particular was encouraged and
became widely prevalent. Although the impacts on occupational and environmental
health were beginning to be realized, the necessity for greater food production despite
inadequate safety testing lead to the continued use of these chemicals in everyday life.
Early in the 1970s governments of many developed countries recognized the need to
adopt a proactive role for government intervention and regulation in this area. This,
combined with the fact that markets in developed countries approached saturation, lead
to the multinational corporations turning their attention to the developing world, where
public health concerns for occupational and environmental health were low. These
conditions lead to an increase in the international mobility of hazardous products,
industry, and wastes to these lucrative markets of cheap labour, with only its costs and
relative indifference to occupational and environmental health standards.
What was described in one report as a normal accident was apparently initiated by the
introduction of water into the MIC storage tank, resulting in an uncontrollable reaction,
with liberation of heat and escape of MIC and other decomposition products in the form
of a gas. Safety systems were either not functioning or were inadequate to deal with
large volumes of the escaping toxic chemicals.

90

4.5 Air Pollution in the Workplace
Airborne hazards are common problems in occupational
health. Several diseases are known to be caused by
inhalation of substances found in particular occupations. For
each category of disease noted in Section 5.2, there are long
Among the more than 200,000 persons exposed to the gas, the initial death toll within a
week following the accident was over 25,000 by 1990, the Directorate of Claims in
Bhopal had prepared medical folders for 361 966 of the exposed persons. Of these,
173382 had temporary injuries and 18922 had permanent injuries, with the recorded
deaths totaling 3828.
One of the most important lessons of the Bhopal tragedy is how important it is to prevent
these incidents by taking action in advance. Environmental legislation, preventive
maintenance strategies,
worker-training programmes, environmental education programmes, research on
intermediate products, development of systematic hazard-evaluation models, emergency
planning, and disaster preparedness are all examples of such activity.
International agencies such as the United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP),
the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the World Health Organization (WHO)
play a key role in preventing such disasters.
Source: Dhara and Dhara, 1995

91
lists of workplaces where such diseases have been
documented to be excessive due to inadequate air quality
controls. The incidence and prevalence of these conditions
have changed over time. For example, the fibrotic lung
diseases (those that cause scarring of the lungs) used to be
quite prevalent, and still are in developing countries where
exposure controls are inadequate. This category of diseases
includes silicosis, asbestosis, coal miners' pneumoconiosis,
and others. Occupational lung cancer, chronic obstructive
lung diseases and chronic bronchitis are well documented as
occurring in association with workplace exposures.
Occupational asthma is now increasingly common, with the
list of substances known to be capable of causing asthma
growing rapidly.
Suffice it to note that there are by far more cases of disease
caused by air pollution inside a workplace than by exposures
to the general community outside. Also, for many people, the
distinction between the work environment, the home, and the
general environment is an artificial distinction. Exposure
control in the community should always be linked to exposure
control inside the plant, and the fact that exposures are
usually much higher inside the plant should always be taken
into account in prioritizing prevention activities.

92
EXERCISE QUESTION
1. Define industrial air pollution
2. What are the three different types of air pollutants based
on chemical characteristics.
3. Describe some of the air pollutants and their effect.
4. Explain Bhopal gas tragedy.

93
CHAPTER FIVE
GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL
PROBLEMS DUE TO AIR POLLUTION
to:
1. Describe the factors that contribute for global warming
2. Identify the different green house gases.
3. Enumerate the potential adverse health effects of
global warming.
4. List different international responses to ozone
depletion.
The CO
2
concentration in the atmosphere is 25% higher than
what it was at the beginning of the century. Large scale
deforestation, burning of chemical and fossil fuel have created
this increase. Climatologists believe that even a small
increase atmospheric CO
2
can have major effects on climate.
CO
2
is transparent to incoming visible sun energy, but like
glass, it absorbs infrared heat reradiated from the earths
surface. This is called green house effect. The earth planet
has already been warmed by 0.8 to 2.5
o
C and is going to get

94
hotter by 3 to 5
o
C within the next country It is feared that even
a slight increase in temperature would cause the polar ice
caps to melt and rise the sea level, submerging a number of
major cities of the world, because many are along the
seacoast.
5.3. Global warming
What is global warming?
The fate of solar energy when reached the earth
Absorption by earth and natural green house gases
(CO
2
, CH
4
, water vapor); Infrared radiation reflection by
earths crust;
Infrared radiation absorption by the green house gases;
Infrared radiation retention by green house gases;
Resulting in an acceptable level of temperature at the
earth at 15
0
C
Could have been 19
0
C less if the reflected heat from the
earth escaped to the space.
IR absorption by green house gases as a function of
concentration of these gases.
Anthropogenic (man made) green house gases and
their sources:
1. CO
2
: fossil and bio-mass fuel burning, forest fire, etc.
2. N
2
O: N
2
containing fertilizers processing, vehicles

95
3. CH
4
: animal dung decomposition, waste landfills, wet
lands, etc
4. CFCs: factories.
5. CO
2
and CFCs are main contributors to IR absorption:
6. 1980 UNEP IR absorption contribution: 55%, 24%, 15%
6% by CO
2
, CFCs, CH
4
, Nitrous oxide, respectively
Potential health effects due to global warming
General points:
- Average earths temperature variation:
- 0.6
0
C/past 100 years; forecasted: 1-3.5
0
C/next 100
years
- (an increase of 1
0
C/700 yrs versus today 1
0
C/35 yrs).
- An increase of 2
0
C would result events not seen before
125 000 years ago. Variations in climatically factors:
wind velocity, rainfall, etc.
- Variations in the ability to respond to the effects:
economics and susceptibility.
Effects: Direct and Indirect:
A/ Direct effects:
1. Thermal extreme effect: (heat waves) the skin, CNS
and Circulatory system the most affected: thermo-
regulation disturbance; heat stroke and exhaustion,
decreased male fertility, cerebro-vascular stroke, etc.

96
2. Effect on the respiratory organs: persons with chronic
diseases like asthma, bronchitis, cardiovascular are
the most affected.
3. Weather instability and natural calamities: cyclones,
land slides, draught, flooding, etc.
B/ Indirect effects:
1. Vector borne diseases: mosquitoes (malaria, yellow
fever, rift valley fever); Tsetse fly (African sleeping
sickness); Fly (faeco-oral related diseases,
onchocerciasis, leishmaniasis, schistosomiasis.)
2. Waterborne diseases: due to water shortage &
contamination
3. Sea-level rise: damages fresh water, affects soil
salinity,
4. Agricultural productivity:
Reduced rainfall; increased pests; decreased soil
fertility; decreased farming land, etc.
Affects both staple foods & horticulture
harvesting; and animal husbandry.
5. Food shortages and malnutrition;
6. Air pollution impact: increased pollen; concentration of
pollutants;
7. Impacts to socio-economic development.

97
5.4. OZONE DEPLETION
Identity: found in stratosphere in nature as O
3
; its detection in
troposphere (ground level) is an indicator of pollution.
Its role:
Solar radiation: 55% IR; 40% visible light; 5% UV.
Acts as a UV protective blanket (layer).
UV radiation includes three bands: UVA (400-320nm);
UVB (320-280nm); UVC (280-200nm), far UV (< 50nm).
It blocks nearly all UVC, half UVB, and small part UVC.
Mechanism for UV blocking:
Equilibrium in nature between destruction and
production of O
3
.
O
2
O+O (energized by UVC)
10+O
2
O
3
+ IR (production of Ozone)
O
3
+ UV O
2
+O: (destruction of Ozone as energized
by UVB)
What causes Ozone depletion?
Human activity: release of halogenated hydrocarbons:
CFCs; CCI
4
;
Are used as refrigerants, propellants, solvents, foam
production, etc.
Are stable under normal conditions in the
troposphere.

98
These volatile chemicals become active with the
presence of UV to react with O
3
;
The reaction:
1. CCI
2
F
2
+ UV CCIF
2
+ CI
-

2. CI
-
+ O
3
CIO + O
2

3. CIO +O CI
-
+ O
2

4. Net: O
3
+O2O
2
(Chlorine atom acts as a catalyst).
Potential adverse effects:
UVC is absorbed by O
3
, (does not reach the earth);
UVB and UVA reach the earth.
A/ Direct effect:
1. Skin damage and cancer:
Acute exposure: thermal extremes due to UV: sun
burn; skin lesions;
Cumulative (chronic) exposure: skin cancer in fair
skinned humans;
UNEP estimates: 5% skin cancer increase during
2070s (extra 100 cases of skin cancer per million
population per year) in Europeans living at around
latitude 45 degrees N)
2. Effects on eye: by UVB; cornea, lens, and retina:
cataract (snow blindness): UNEP estimates: 1.75
million additional cataract cases worldwide each year
due to 10% loss of ozone.

99
3. Effects on immune system
Skin sensitivity; animal tests; possible effects.
B/ Indirect effects:
Effects on plants: impairs photosynthesis & UVB;
farm productivity declining
Effects on aquatic system: Phytoplankton & UVB;
aquatic farm productivity declining. CO
2
take up
will be diminished.
INTERNATIONAL RESPONSE TO OZONE DEPLETION:
1. The Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete the
ozone layer in 1987, and its amendments in London
(1990) and Copenhagen (1992);
Issues in the protocol:
Ozone depletion is actually observed;
Few products were involved in the depletion:
CFCs, methyl chloroform, methyl bromide.
Few producers were involved.
2. A climate Convention signed in RIO De-Janioro in
June 1992; (Agenda 21).
3. The Kyoto (Japan) protocol signed in March 1998;
4. A legal binding ratification by protocol signatories is
underway

100
Perspectives of operating in harmony with climate and
weather
Biometeorology and bioclimatology: for climate
changes study and assessment;
Early warning systems;
Building designs and Urban planning;
Disaster mitigation planning;
Environment and sustainable development.
5.5 Acid rain
ACID DEPOSITION
Rain fall by nature is slightly acidic due to the tendency to
each chemically with atmospheric CO2. Forming a weak
solution of carbonic acid with PH 5.6, by definition any ppt
measuring less than 5.6 on the pH scale is considered acid
rain.
CO
2
+H
2
O=====H
2
CO
3
=====H +HCO
3

PH=log 10[1/H
+
]
Carbonic acid created by CO
2
in air
Volcanic emission
Biological decomposition
Chlorine & sulfates from ocean spray can drop the pH
of ppt below 5.6 while, alkaline dust can raise the pH
above 7

101
Acid rain is only one form in which acid deposition occurs.
Fog, snow, mist, and dew also trap and deposit atmospheric
contaminants. Furthermore, fall out of dry sulfate, nitrate, and
chloride particles can account for as much as half of the acidic
deposition in some areas.
Extent of the problem
A factor that complicates the acid rain problem and makes
finding a solution difficult is its regional and continental scale.
Most oxides of sulfur and nitrogen are emitted from tall stacks
at power plants in order to increase the dispersion and dilution
of the stack gases. This may protect near by communities
from the immediate effect of air pollution, discharge from tall
chimneys allows the pollutants to be carried for long distance
in the atmosphere. The pollution in its effect is air mailed to
other regions and even to other continents. It is estimated that
50% of the acid rain in eastern Canada comes from the USA,
and about 25 % of the acid rain in the New England originates
from Canadian sources. In addition, acid rain in Norway is
believed to come mostly from industrial areas in Great Britain
and continental Europe.
Formation of acid rain
SO
2
------H
2
SO
4
62 %
NO
2
-------HNO
3
32%
Cl---------HCl 6%

102
In urban areas, where transportation is the major sources of
pollution, nitric acid is equal to or slightly greater than sulfuric
acid in the air.
Environmental effect of Acid Rain
1. Damage to aquatic life
Reproduction is the most sensitive stage in the life cycle
Eggs and fry of many fish species are killed at pH 5.0
Disrupt the food chain by killing:
Plants
Aquatic Insects
Invertebrate on which fish dependent on food
At pH level less than 5
Adult fish die
Trout, salmon
Game fish
Acidity
Alters body chemistry
Destroy gills prevent oxygen up take
Causes bone decalcification
Disrupt muscle contraction
Phytoplankton population are reduced, and many common
water, dowelling invertebrates such as may flies and stone
flies can not survive when the Ph falls below 5.5

103
Acid dead lakes have pH below about 3.5
2. Deterioration of buildings and monuments
Most glorious buildings and works of art are being destroyed
by air pollution:
Smoke and soot coat buildings
Paintings
Textiles
Lime stone and marble are destroyed by atmospheric
acid at an alarming rate
Air pollution also damages
Ordinary buildings
Corroding steel
Weakens buildings, roads, bridges
Rubber deterioration
3. Mobilization of toxic metal
Acid rain can cause lightly bound toxic metals such as
aluminum which can kill fish by damaging their gills and
causing asphyxiation.
It also cause leaching of heavy metals: Hg, Cd in to drinking
water and results in Bio accumulation
4. Damage to forest productivity
In 1983 in Germany some 34 % of the forest was affected and
in 1985n, more than 4 billion hectares (50%) were reported to
be in the state of decline Show evidence of:

104
Root necrosis
Lack of seeding growth
Premature tree death
Growth reduction
Defoliation
High altitude forests are subjected to especially intense doses
of these acids because clouds saturated with pollutants tend
to hang on , mountain tops, bathing forests in a toxic soap for
days even weeks at a time
5. visibility reduction
Particulates in the atmosphere reduce the visibility due to
scattering and absorption of light. The dust particles of
2000/Cm3 can obscure a mountain at 75 km; while a
concentration of NO
2
of 20 ppm would probably reduce the
visibility to 1 km. NO
2
causes the sky to appear brownish in
color in addition to reducing visibility.
A relationship between the concentration of the particulate in
the atmosphere, and the visibility can be developed as follows
Lv = 5.2r/kc
Where: Lv Visibility
K scattering area ratio
C particulate concentration
Particle density
r particle radius

105
Example
Consider oil droplets 0.6m diameter suspended in air and
exposed to day time radiation .The density of the particle is
0.9 gm/cm
3
.
(a) What is the concentration of the particle in g/m3 for a
visibility of 1.5 km , If the k value is 4.0
(b) What is the concentration of suspended particulates in the
density of 2.5 gm/cm3 and an effective diameter of 1.0, if
k is 2.0 and visibility is reduced to 8 km?

Solution
(a)
3
/ 234
1500 4
3 . 0 9 . 0 2 . 5 2 . 5
m g
x
x x
kLv
r
c
= = =
(b)
3
/ 406
8000 2
5 . 0 5 . 2 2 . 5 2 . 5
m g
x
x x
kLv
r
C
= = =

106

EXERCISE QUESTIONS

1. What is global warming?
2. What is acid rain and its effect?
3. Describe the direct and indirect health effects of global
warming?
4. List the cause of ozone depletion? And its potential health
effects?

107
CHAPTER SIX
INDOOR AIR POLLUTION
to:
1. Differentiate indoor and outdoor air pollution.
2. Identify the source type and effect of indoor air
pollution.
3. List different control measures of indoor air pollution.
Inefficient combustion and smoky fuels burned for cooking
and heating are a troubling source of serious air pollution in
many traditional and developing societies. The use of such
fuels causes air pollution problems both indoors and outdoors.
The quality of air indoors is a problem in many buildings in
developed countries because they were built to be airtight and
energy efficient. Chemicals from burning fuels, smoking and
other sources in the building accumulate and create a
pollution problem. Indoor air pollution is also a serious
problem in many developing societies. In homes where open
fires burn, especially when the climate is cold, the pollution

108
from the fires accumulates and exposes the inhabitants,
especially women, to the risks associated with smoke
inhalation. The result can be serious lung disease and an
increased risk of cancer, as occurs in some parts of China
among women who tend fires in homes heated with coal.
Indoor air pollution has been identified as one of the foremost
global environmental problems (World Bandk, 1993). An SPM
level of 50-100 g/m
3
may cause health effects (WHO,
1987a). Rural people in developing countries may receive as
much as two thirds of the global exposure to particulates.
Women and young children suffer the greatest exposure.
Indoor air pollution contributes to acute respiratory infections
in young children, exacerbation of asthma, chronic lung
disease and cancer in adults, and adverse pregnancy
outcomes for women exposed during pregnancy. Acute
respiratory infections, principally pneumonia, are the chief
killers of young children, causing a loss of 119 million
disability adjusted life years (DALYS) per year or 105 of the
total burden of disease in developing countries (World Bank,
1993). Data from the Gambia, Nepal, South Africa, the United
States, and Zimbabwe suggest that reducing indoor air
pollution from very high to low levels could potentially halve
the incidence of childhood pneumonia. Adults can suffer
chronic damage to the respiratory system from indoor
pollution.

109
The most important indoor air contaminants in developed
countries are tobacco smoke, radon decay products,
formaldehyde, asbestos fibers, combustion products (such as
NO
x
, SO
x
, CO, carbon dioxide and polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons), and other chemicals used in the household.
Several microbiological air contaminants are also of
importance including moulds and fungi, viruses, bacteria,
algae, pollen, spores and their derivatives. In airtight buildings
especially (e.g. buildings which are energy efficient, but with
poor ventilation), indoor air pollutants can accumulate,
causing tight building syndrome.
6.3. Environmental tobacco smoke
It is a self evident air pollutant from combustion that many
people produce knowingly in the home, despite the warnings
of adverse health effect. ETS is a mixture of more than 4000
compounds, at least 40 of which are carcinogenic and many
of which are strong irritants. Indoors tobacco smoke can harm
occupants as well as the smoker; ETS is also refereed to as
second hand or side stream smoke, and exposure to it is
often called passive smoking.
The EPA of USA in 1992 concluded that exposure to ETS is
responsible for about 3000 lung cancer deaths each year in
non smoking adults.

110
In addition to second hand smoke, other sources of in door
combustion products include
stoves
space heaters
fire places
chimneys
Pollutants from these sources include, CO, NO
2
. and
particulate.
Kerosene space heaters may also emit SO
2
and acid
aerosols.
Short term health effects of exposure to ETS:
irritation of the eye, nose and throat
aggravate asthma
6.4. Radon gas
Radon is colorless, odorless, radioactive gas that is the part of
a natural decay process beginning with uranium and ending
with lead.
Radon gas seeps in to homes from the soil, brick concrete
and stone. It is believed to be produced from radio active by
product of stone and soil under the house. The level and
effect of radon accumulation is very high in unventilated
buildings. It is estimated in USA 10% of lung cancer deaths

111
may be attributed to radon gas exposure. Therefore radon is
believed to be a carcinogen.
A simplified description of the sequence, along with half-lives,
alpha, gamma, and beta radiation emitted. It is found in
varying concentrations in soils and rocks that make up the
earths crust. Because it is the gas, radon flows easily through
the porous soil and fissures in rock. When it reaches to the
ground surface, the gas dispersed and diluted to very low
concentrations in the out door environment.
Radon itself is inert, but its short lived decay products (Radon
progeny): polonium, lead and Bismuth, are chemically active
and easily become attached to inhaled particles that can
lodged in the lungs. In fact, it is the alpha emitting polonium,
formed as radon decays, that causes the greatest lung
damage.
Radon captured in the ground water , to be released when
that water is aerated , such as during showers ( the radon risk
in water is from inhalation of the released gas, not from
drinking the water itself ) .A level of 10000 Pci/l of radon in
water will produce about 1 pci/l of radon in indoor air.
Radon gas and its radioactive daughters are known
carcinogens and may be the second leading cause of lung
cancer after smoking. The EPA estimates that
between5000and 20000 lung cancer deaths per year in the
USA can attributed to household radon exposure

112
The degree of risk depends on:
total exposure time
average radon concentration in the home

Uranium
4.4 billion ys
Lead 214
27 min.
Bismuth
214, 19.7. in.
Lead
210
19.4 ys
Polonium
218
3 min.
Radon
222
3.8 days
Radium
226
1620 ys
Polonium
214,160s

113
Table 6.1: estimated annual lung cancer deaths in United
States, attributable to radon exposure, 1986.
Smoking history Population (millions) Lung cancer deaths
All cases Radon attributable
Never smoked 145 5,000 500
Former smoker 43 57,000 6,400
Current light smoker * 38 37,000 4,500
Current heavy smoker 14 30,000 4,200
Total 241 130,000 15,700

*Less than 25 cigarettes per day
Source: Nazaroff and Teichman (1990)
6.5. Formaldehyde
Formaldehyde is an organic chemical widely used in the
manufacture of many building materials and household
products. It is also a by-product of combustion and may be
present in significant amounts in indoor air. It is used, for
example to add permanent- press qualities to drapes and other
textiles, as a component of glues and adhesive, and as a
preservative in some paints and coatings. Among the most
significant household sources of formaldehyde are pressed
wood products that are made using adhesives containing three
formaldehyde (UF) tests. These include particle board and
plywood paneling.

114
Formaldehyde is a colorless, pungent-smelling gas that cause
eye and throat irritation, nausea, and respiratory distress in
some people exposed to high concentrations. It has also been
shown to cause cancer in animals and may cause cancer in
humans, Average concentration in older homes (envisions
generally decrease over time) are generally below 0.1 mg lm
3
,
in homes with significant amounts of now pressed wood
products, levels can exiled 0.3 mg /m
3
A suggested guideline
is for elves not exceed 0.12 mg/ m
3
.
Formaldehyde emissions increase with to and humidity thus,
the use of dehumidifiers and air conditioning can help reduce
indoor concentrations. Increased ventilation rates also reduce
formaldehyde resins rather than UF resins.
6.6. Asbestos
Asbestos used to be common building material formed in
structural fire proofing, heating systems installation, floor and
ceiling tiles and roofing felts and shingles. It has been also
used in fires place, gloves, ironing board covers and certain
hair driers.
6.7. Lead
Lead is a harmful environmental pollutant. People can be
exposed to lead in drinking water and food, as well to lead
dust in the air. The most significant sources of lead dust old

115
lead based paint is a particular threat to the health of children
load can become air borne in the have when lead based paint
is improperly removed from suffices by scraping, sanding , or
open flame burning .
At high leaves lead can cause convulsions, coma, and even
death lower levels can adversely affect the brain, CNS, blood
cells, and kidneys Infants and children are especially
vulnerable because lead is more easily absorbed in to their
bodies Harmful effects of lead in infants and children include
delays in physical and mental development.
6.8. Carbon Monoxide
Carbon monoxide is produced primarily by the incomplete
burning of fossil fuels, for example by cars and other gasoline-
powered engines, and by charcoal or oil heaters. It is odorless
and colorless, and because it is slightly heavier than air, it
tends to collect in confined spaces and affect people without
warning. The written history of carbon monoxide goes back
many years, as Roman records discuss deaths associated
with fires in enclosed spaces.
Basically, as carbon monoxide concentrations go up, the
oxygen carrying capacity of the blood goes down
disproportionately more, because oxygen molecules are
literally being replaced by carbon monoxide molecules and
the ability of hemoglobin to bind oxygen depends on O
2

116
binding at neighboring sites. The carbon monoxide molecules
bond to hemoglobin is 200 300 times stronger than is the
hemoglobin- oxygen bond, so carbon monoxide is not cleared
easily from the circulatory system. Exposure to short periods
of high concentration of carbon monoxide is just as bad as
long periods of low concentrations. Normal amounts of carbon
monoxide in the blood are in the range of 1%. Smokers can
have higher concentrations, and if one were to exercise at
rush hour in heavy traffic (at 10-15 ppm), levels of 3 4%
could be expected.
Table 6.2: Predicated Carboxyhaemoglobin Levels for
Subjects Engaged in Different Types of Work
Carbon monoxide Exposure Time Predicated COHb Level for those
concentration engaged in
ppm mg/m
3
sedentary work light work heavy work
100 115 15 minutes 1.2 2.0 2.8
50 57 30 minutes 1.1 1.9 2.6
25 29 1 hour 1.1 1.7 2.2
10 11.5 8 hours 1.5 1.7 1.7
___________________________________________________________________
Source: WHO, 1987a
Different predicated carboxyhaemoglobin levels for subjects
engaged in different types of work are shown in Table 5.4
Different LOAELs (lowest-observed-adverse-effect-level) are
shown in Table 2.7 Exercise tolerance does not seem to be
decreased until after a level of about 5% is reached in healthy

117
subjects. People at increased risk include those with heart
and lung problems. It has been found that for every 1%
increase in COHb (i.e. carbon monoxide molecule attached to
a haemoglobin molecule) there was a 4% decrease in time to
ischaemic changes (Folinsbee, 1992). At low levels,
symptoms of CO exposure include fatigue, headaches and
dizziness, but higher concentrations can lead to impaired
vision, disturbed coordination, nausea and eventually death.
To prevent carboxyhaemoglobin levels from exceeding a
2.5% to 3% level in the non smoker, the following guidelines
were proposed: a maximum permitted exposure of 100 mg/m
3

for less than 15 minutes; 60 mg/m
3
(50 ppm) for less than 30
minutes; 30 mg/m
3
(25 ppm) for less than 60 minutes and 10
mg/m
3
(9 ppm) for 8 hours (WHO, 1987a).

118
Table 6.3: Human Health Effects Associated with Low-
Level Carbon Monoxide Exposure: Lowest-
Observed-Adverse-Effect Levels
Carboxyhaemoglobin effects Concentration (%)
2.3 4.3 statistically significant decrease (3-7%) in the relation between
work time and exhaustion in exercising young healthy men
2.9 4.5 statistically significant decrease in exercise capacity (i.e.
shortened duration of exercise before onset of pain) in
patients with angina and increase in duration of angina
attacks
5 5.5 statistically significant decrease in maximal oxygen
consumptions and exercise time in young healthy men during
strenuous exercise
< 5 No statistically significant vigilance decrements after exposure
to carbon monoxide
5 7.6 statistically significant impairment of vigilance tasks in healthy
experimental subjects
5 17 Statistically significant diminution of visual perception, manual
dexterity, ability to learn, or performance in complex
sensorimotor tasks (e.g. driving)
7 20 Statistically significant decrease in maximal oxygen
consumption during strenuous exercise in young healthy men
Source: WHO, 1987a

119
6.9. Biological Contaminants
Airborne contaminants of a biological nature include bacteria
fungi viruses animal dander, dust mites, pollen, and other tiny
forms or products of life. There are many sources of these
biological pollutants contaminated central heating or cooling
systems can become breeding grounds and the distribute
these contaminants throughout the home standing water -
water damaged materials or wet surfaces can also serve as
breading grounds .
Allergic reactions such as asthma and rhinitis can be triggered
by many biological contaminants in sensitive people.
Infectious diseases, such as influenza measles and chicken
pox can be transmitted through the air, and some fungi
release disease causing toxin that can become air borne. The
deaths from legionnaires disease of 29 visitors at a
convention in Philadelphia Hotel in 1976 is a notable example
of the potential hazards. The hotels ventilation system had
nurtured the bacteria legionnela.
By controlling the relative humidity level in a home, growth of
some types of biological contaminants can be minimized; a
relative humidity between 30 and 50 percent is generally
recommended kitchen and bath room exhaust fans vented to
the out doors will help to eliminate moisture that builds up
from every day activities. Naturally, keeping a house clean will
also help reduce air borne biological contaminants particularly

120
house mites, animal dander, pollen and other allergic causing
agents.
6.10. Building materials, furnitures and
Chemical products
A wide Varity of household products contain formaldehyde
and other hydrocarbons. These include foam insulation floor
covering (caplet) and textile products, furniture polish
disinfections etc.
6.11. Sick Building Syndrome (SBS)
Indoor air pollution is not limited to individual homes many
multistory commercial and office buildings have significant air
quality problems A number of well identified illnesses (for
example Legionnaires disease) have been directly traced to
specific building problems. Three are called building related
illnesses.
When the occupants of building have symptoms that do not fir
the pattern of any particular illness and are difficult to trace to
a specific source, the phenomenon is referred to as trace to
specific source, the phenomenon is referred to as sick
building syndrome. This term is applied to building when more
than 20 percent of its occupants complain of health problems
for 2 weeks or more and the symptoms are relieved when the

121
occupants leave the building. It is estimated that as many as
30 percent of new or remodeled commercial buildings
experience sick bubbling syndrome Health complaints
typically include sneezing fatigue headache, dizziness,
nausea dry throat and irritability
Air pollution sources in commercial buildings are similar to
those found in the home one major cause of sick building
syndrome is poor design, operation, or maintenance of the
comply mechanical ventilation system needed to heat, cool,
and circulate air through our a large building
Ventilation problems arise when in an effort to save energy
inadequate amounts of out door as are exchanged the indoor
air problems also may occur if air supply and return vents with
each rook are blocked or placed improperly. In the wrong
locations, outdoor air intake vents can bring in automobile
exhaust boiler emissions or even air wanted from lest rooms.
The ventilation system lithely can be a source of air pollution
spreading microbes that thrive on the inside surfaces of duct
work as well as in humidifiers dehumidifiers, and air
conditioners Finally air pollutants can be circulated in to
offices from restaurants print slops and dry cleaning stores
located in the same building, as well as from under ground
parking garages.

122
Sick building syndrome usually can not be effectively
remedied with out a comprehensive air quality survey and
investigation these investigations may begin with
questionnaires and telephone interviews to assess the nature
and extent of occupant symptoms. the ventilation system is
often the most important factor to investigate ; inadequate
ventilation accounts for about half of sick building syndrome
cases>Air quality testing may help to identify contaminants ,
but air sampling and analysis are not always effective in
solving the problem due to the very low levels of pollutants.
Table 6.4: Sources and exposure guidelines of indoor air
contaminants
Pollutant and indoor sources Guidelines, average concentrations
Asbestos and other fibrous
aerosols
Friable asbestos; fireproofing,
thermal and acoustic insulation,
decoration, Hard asbestos: vinyl
floor and cement products.
0.2 fibers/ml for fibers longer than 5
m
Carbon monoxide
Kerosene and gas space heaters,
gas stoves, wood stoves, fireplaces,
smoking.
10 mg/m
3
for 8 hr, 40 mg/m
3
for 1
hr
Formaldehyde
Particleboard, paneling, playwood,
120 g/ m
3

123
carpets, ceiling tile, urea-
formaldehyde foam insulation, other
construction materials.
Inhalable particulate matter
Smoking, vacuuming, wood stoves,
fireplaces
55-110 g/ m
3
annual, 150-350
g/ m
3
for 24 hr
Nitrogen dioxide
Kerosene and gas space heaters,
gas stoves.
100 g/ m
3
annual
Ozone
Photocopying machines,
electrostatic air cleaners
235 g/ m
3
/hr once a year
Radon and radon progeny
Diffusion from soil, ground water,
building materials
0.01 working levels annual
Sulfur dioxide
Kerosene space heaters
80 g/ m
3
annual, 365 g/ m
3
24 hr
Volatile organics
Cooking, smoking, room
deodorizers, cleaning sprays,
paints,varnishes, solvents, carpets,
furniture, draperies.
None available
Source: Nagda et al. (1987).

124
6.12. Indoor air pollution in relation to
developing countries
Indoor-air pollution in the context of developing countries
About 3.5 billion people in less developed countries, still rely
on biofuels (wood, dung and crop residues) for domestic
energy [WRI 98]. Fuels are typically in open fires or simple
stoves, often indoors, and rarely with adequate ventilation or
chimneys. This situation leads to some of the highest ever
recorded levels of air pollution, to which young children and
women in particular are exposed for many hours each day
[Smith 87, Smith 93].
Although smoke from biofuels contains thousands of
substances, many of which may be harmful to health, it is
particulates that are thought to best describe the health-
damaging potential of this pollution. Particles are defined by
their diameter, expressed in microns. Smaller particles of less
than 10 microns (PM
10
) are thought most harmful due to their
ability to penetrate into the lungs. Concentrations are
expressed as the weight of PM
10
( g/m
3
) of air sampled.
Current US EPA recommendations are that average 24 hour
PM
10
levels should exceed 150 g/m
3
only once in 100
occasions (99
th
percentile level), and that the annual average
should not exceed 50 g/m
3
. The revised World Health

125
Organization air quality guidelines for Europe, reflecting the
growing evidence that there appears to be no safe lower limit
for particulate exposure, has not recommended 'levels' of
PM
10
. Instead, exposure-response data for mortality,
respiratory symptoms, and service use are presented. Given
this ever more cautious attitude towards particulate air
pollution in the developed world, it is striking that typical 24
hour average PM
10
concentrations in developing country
households using an open fire are around 1000 g/m
3
or
more, and that during cooking average particulate
concentrations in these homes are therefore at least 20 times
higher than levels at which important health outcomes are
being detected.
WHO has estimated that around 75% of the total global
burden of exposure to particulate air pollution is experienced
indoors in developing countries: 50% in rural areas, and 25%
in cities [WHO/EHG 97]. Whilst these figures are not
disaggregated by age, it is known that young children are at
high risk of exposure, because they are usually with their
mothers in the kitchen. This global distribution of exposure is
in striking contrast to the focus of attention and resources for
research and policy on air pollution, which has been largely
directed on the outdoor environment of cities in the developed
world.

126
Threat to children's health
Dependence on polluting solid fuels to meet basic energy
needs represents one of the biggest threats to childrens
health. 56% of deaths and more than 80% of DALYs lost due
to solid fuel use fall on children under five years of age. Acute
lower respiratory infections, in particular pneumonia, continue
to be the biggest killer of young children and cause more than
2 million annual deaths. This toll almost exclusively falls on
children in developing countries.

Attributable mortality and DALYs lost due to indoor air pollution by
age group - 2002
Evidence linking IAP exposure with acute lower
respiratory infections (ALRI)
Around twenty observational studies examining the
association between IAP exposure and fairly well defined

127
ALRI have now been published. The studies reporting positive
results indicate an increase in risk of ALRI for exposed
children of between 2 and 5 times. Although this suggests that
reducing IAP exposure could be a powerful preventive
intervention for ALRI [Kirkwood 95], there remain important
gaps in our knowledge:
The size of any effect on ALRI incidence is uncertain,
which in turn means there is uncertainty about the
potential that reduced IAP exposure has for
prevention of ALRI.
The exposure-response relationship has not been
quantified, with the result that it is not known by how
much exposure needs to be reduced in order to
achieve useful health gain. This has important
implications for implementation because there are
currently substantial technical and economic
barriers to achieving large reductions in exposure
among many poor communities for whom pollution is
worst.
Disease burden by level of development
The importance of indoor air pollution as a public health threat
varies drastically according to the level of development: in
high-mortality developing countries, indoor air pollution is
responsible for up to 3.7% of the burden of disease, while the

128
same risk factor no longer features among the top 10 risk
factors in industrialized countries.

Disease burden (DALYs) due to indoor air pollution by level of
development - 2002
WHY DOES THE BURDEN PERSIST?
There are a number of reasons why the burden on child
health associated with IAP persists, and these can be broadly
summarized as follows:
The limitations of the scientific evidence on causation.
There are technical and economic barriers to achieving
substantial exposure reductions, especially in poor
communities.
The 'cross-cutting' nature of the problem and the
interventions required, typically involving a range of

129
technical, community and policy options, and
collaboration between organizations and agencies
responsible for health, energy, housing and
development.
Interventions
The following interventions may be used alone or in
combinations to reduce exposure to IAP
Technical interventions
Smoke removal - Flues attached to stoves, hoods and
chimneys to remove smoke.
Other stove improvements - Stove improvements that
reduce emissions, through better combustion and/or
more efficient heat transfer.
Housing design - Changes to kitchen design to
increase ventilation and control the distribution of
pollution.
Fuels - Methods of cleaning existing fuels, for
example bio-gas and other "clean" bio-mass products,
or promoting fuel-switching to alternatives such as
kerosene, LPG or electricity.
Behavioral interventions
Promoting awareness of long-term health effects on
the part of users. This may lead to people finding
ways of minimizing exposure through e.g. better
kitchen management.

130
Infant protection - Keeping children away from smoke
exposure.
Policy level interventions
Fuel pricing - To encourage the use of cleaner fuels.
Other forms of financial assistance and development -
subsidizing cost of appliances, local micro-credit
facilities for durable higher quality devices, income
generation opportunities (for example, through tree
nursery development).
Domestic Fuel Shortage and Indoor Air Pollution
The obligation to provide both water and fuel for domestic
use, particularly in conditions of increasing environmental
degradation, is a massive burden on poor urban and rural
women and girls. In addition, the health effects of domestic
use of biomass fuels (wood, dung, agricultural residues) and
coal are suffered largely by women. Important issues can be
summarized as follows:
Women are hit hardest by shortage of fuel, since the
onus is on them to find solutions.
Household coping strategies can affect nutritional
status since fuel availability affects cooking habits and
food availability.
Better understanding is needed of the health impact
of restricting poor communities access to natural
resources.

131
The linkages between fuel, food, water, women=s
time and women=s health warrant further exploration.
Dung-work illustrates the linkage between women=s
work and their status.
Where biomass fuels are commonly used, similar
rates in women and men are now being found for
diseases such as chronic bronchitis and cor
pulmonale; age of onset of cor pulmonale in women is
early.
Womens respiratory disorders in India are linked to
domestic exposure to cooking smoke; however,
respiratory disease in women often goes untreated.
Undetected pneumoconiosis in rural women may be
caused by a combination of dust from maize grinding
and smoke from biomass fuel.
High lung cancer rates in Chinese women can be
attributed to the combined effects of passive smoking
and the domestic use of poor quality coal.
DEVELOPMENT REPORT - WHO/Air Pollution
The United Nations World Health Organization says millions
of people die earlier than they should because of indoor air
pollution. It says most victims live in developing countries.
Dietrich Schwela is a pollution scientist for the W-H-O. Mr.
Schwela says people need to be informed about the dangers
of indoor air pollution. He says many people do not know that

132
the air found in buildings can injure and sometimes kill. The
WHO scientist says indoor air pollution is common in
developing countries because people there use open stoves.
They cook food on the stoves. And, the devices produce heat
for their homes.
Mr. Schwela says that many houses in developing countries
do not use chimneys. Chimneys are tall, narrow structures
with an opening at the top. They usually are made of building
materials or metal. The opening of the chimney should rise
through the top of the building. A fire can be built at the
bottom of the chimney. Chimneys permit smoke to travel up
and out of the house. They protect people in the house from
breathing in much of the smoke. Mr. Schwela says chimneys
in developing countries often are not built correctly. He says
this is especially true in African nations. The W-H-O scientist
says chimneys there often end one or two meters below the
top of the house. This means the smoke travels up and then
around the inside of the building.
Mr. Schwela says such buildings have air with very small and
dangerous pieces of matter, such as dust and ash. This can
cause breathing disorders, lung cancer, and diseases of the
heart and lungs.
Mr. Schwela says women and small children are most at risk.
That is because they spend more time in the house than adult
males. The W-H-O estimates that five-hundred-thousand

133
children in India die each year from indoor air pollution. In
Africa, about that many children die from the problem.
Mr. Schwela advises people not to use open stoves. He says
they also should not use wood and some other natural fuels
inside buildings. Mr. Schwela says natural gas and kerosene
are much better fuels for cooking and heating. And, he says
people should have working a chimney that sucks smoke out
of the house.
HEALTH EFFECTS OF WOOD SMOKE
In developing countries, woodsmoke has had a serious effect
on human health as some wood stoves emit smoke to indoor
air.
In Sydney, studies by the NSW EPA found that most of the
particulate pollution in winter came from 13% of households
using wood heaters. Studies also showed that death rates are
generally higher in winter on days of high pollution, or days
following high particle pollution.
Wood smoke is estimated to be 12 times more carcinogenic
than an equal concentration of cigarette smoke'.
In a laboratory study, mice were subjected to either wood
smoke; oil furnace fumes or clean air for 6 hours. They were
then challenged with a streptococcus bacterium and within
two weeks, 21% of the mice exposed to wood smoke were

134
dead compared with 5% of the mice exposed to the oil
furnace fumes or clean air.
Autopsies have shown that particles less than 2.5 microns in
diameter (PM2.5)are retained in human lungs. Larger
particles are not retained.
The following can be caused by wood smoke:
obstructive airway disease
reduced lung function
asthma, wheezing, cough
higher incidence of bacterial infections
cataracts
eye lens opacification
bronchiolitis
otitis media (ear inflammation)
methemoglobinaemia (reduced oxygen in blood)
cancer
sore throats
migraine
pneumonitis
fibrosis of the lungs
unnecessary deaths

135
6.13. Exercise questions
1. What is the difference between indoor and outdoor air
pollution?
2. What are the common types indoor air pollutants in your
community?
3. Do you think that indoor air pollution as a significant
health problem than outdoor air pollution in Ethiopia? If
so, how?
4. List some of the general measures of controlling indoor air
pollution.

136
CHAPTER 7
RISK ASSESSMENT
to:
1. Define the elements of risk assessment;
2. Understand the types of information needed for each
element of risk assessment;
3. Describe how hazards can be identified in the field;
4. Describe the types of extrapolation required for the
assessment of dose-response;
5. Explain the difference between threshold and non-
threshold effects;
6. Provide several examples of useful markers of
exposure;
7. Illustrate the difference between direct and indirect
approaches of exposure assessment;
8. Describe potential. Errors in environmental sampling.
The ultimate goal of studying the relationship between
environmental hazards and health is to do something to
reduce or eliminate those hazards. This is called risk

137
management. But before anything can be done the risks must
be identified and thoroughly evaluated. This process of
evaluating the possible effects on people of exposure to
substances and other potential hazards is known as risk
assessment.
7.3. The health risk assessment and risk
management framework
Risk assessment has its limitations. In practice, crucial data
are frequently lacking. Reasonable assumptions are made to
arrive at quantitative risk estimation. Several of the many
sources of uncertainties that may accompany a risk
assessment are listed in Table 7.1. Most risk assessments
contain one or more of these and it is essential to evaluate
their impact on the assessment. This process is usually
referred to as sensitivity analysis and may be quite complex.
In many situations, only a qualitative risk assessment may be
appropriate. In view of the specific skills required to judge and
interpret all available data, risk assessment is often
considered to be more of an art than a science. The steps in
risk assessment are shown in figure 7.1.

138

Table7.1. Several of the Many Sources of Uncertainty in
a Risk Assessment
________________________________________________
Use of an experimental study involving an inappropriate
route of exposure;
Differences in biokinetics and/or mechanism of toxicity
between species;
Poor specification of exposure in experimental study i.e.
concentration, duration, route, chemical species;
Extrapolation high dose to low-dose situations;
Difference in age at first exposure or life-style factors
between an experimental group and a risk group;
Exposure to multiple hazards in epidemiology studies;
Potential confounding factors;
Misclassification of the health outcome of concern.
Adapted from Hallenbeck, 1993
When the health risk of a specific environmental hazard or
situation has been characterized, decisions must be made
regarding which of the various control actions should be
taken. Regulatory agencies may develop regulatory options,
evaluate the consequences (public health, economic, social
and political) of the proposed options, and/or they may
implement the agency decisions.

139
7.4. Epidemiological methods
The science of epidemiology was briefly introduced in chapter
1. Data from epidemiological studies may be used directly to
identify hazards and characterize dose-response
relationships. The types of studies used in epidemiology each
have their own benefits and limitations.
7.4.1. Steps in Epidemiological Field
Investigations
A framework of epidemiological concepts and techniques
where by environmental health investigations may be carried
out logically is presented in Figure 7.2.
The aim of analytical studies is to determine if any
environmental factors (or other risk factors) are indeed
associated with the problem (or outcome of interest).
Alternatively, enough data may exist to warrant implementing
controls. The follow-up then would be to determine if control
of the suspected environmental hazard does indeed reduce
morbidity or mortality. An on-going surveillance problem may
be required to monitor progress and to identify changes in the
pattern of the disease outcomes or causes.

140
A number of different types of epidemiological studies may be
used for formal testing of hypotheses. These are discussed
below.
7.4.2. Study Methods
Epidemiological study types differ considerably in their
strengths and weaknesses. Table 7.2 summarizes the main
features of the major traditional types of epidemiological
studies.
There are only so many ways to study the association
between a cause and a disease, injury or other health
condition. One may see what the situation is at the time of the
study. One may start with the cause and see what happens
over time. One may start with the condition and try to
determine what might have caused it in the past. To do any of
this, one may study subjects with knowledge of them as
individuals or one may study only large groups with only
information on the group. One may or may not try to change
things and see what happens. Once these various
combinations are put together, they pretty well describe what
is possible in epidemiology.

141
Table 7.2. Study Designs in Environmental Epidemiology That Use the Individual as the Unit
of Analysis
Study
design
Population Exposure Health effect Confounders Problems Advantages

Descriptive
study
Community or
various sub-
populations
Records of
past
measurement
s
Mortality and
morbidity statistics;
case registries;
case registries;
other reports
Difficult to sort
out
Hard to establish
exposure-effect
relationships
Cheap, useful to
formulate hypotheses
Cross-
sectional
study
Communities or
special groups;
exposed vs. non-
exposed
Current Current Usually Current Can be done quickly; can
use large populations;
can estimate prevalence
Prospective
cohort study
Community or
special groups;
exposed vs. non-
exposed
Defined at
outset of
study (can
change during
study)
To be determined
during study
Usually easy
to measure
Expensive, tie
consuming exposure
categories can change;
high dropout rate
possible
Can estimate incidence
and relative risk; can
study many diseases in
one study; can describe
associations that suggest
cause-effect relationships

142

Historical
cohort study
Special groups
e.g. workers,
patients,
insured
persons
Records of past
measurement
Records of
past or
current
diagnosis
Often difficult
because of
retrospective nature;
depends on disability
of previously
obtained data
Need to rely on
records that may not
be accurate
Less expensive and
quicker than
prospective study; can
be used to study
exposures that no
longer exist
Case-control
study
Diseased
(cases)vs. non-
diseased
(control)
Records or
interview
Known at
start of
study
Possible to eliminate
by matching
Difficult to
generalize; may
incorporate biases;
cannot derive rates
Relatively cheap and
quick; particularly
useful for studying
rare diseases
Experimental
(intervention
s study)
Community or
special groups
Controlled
/known already
To be
measured
during
study
Can be controlled by
randomization of
subjects
Expensive; ethical
consideration; study
subjects compliance
required
Well accepted results;
strong evidence for
causality or efficacy or
intervention
Source: WHO, 1991a

143
An Approach to classification of studies designs
Table 7.3 provides a framework for analyzing both historical
and prospective cohorts studies according to four sets of
criteria. These criteria address defining the study cohort,
quantifying exposure, ascertaining mortality, and analyzing
results. The definition of a study cohort is in turn evaluated
according to the method of cohort selection, criteria for
inclusion or exclusion of cohort members, the extent to which
the subjects selected for study included all eligible workers,
and the adequacy of the size of the cohort. Similarly,
quantifying exposure will take into account the amount of
detail contained in work history files, the extent of industrial
hygiene data, the quality of industrial data, and whether there
is a likely impact of any confounding factors. With respect to
ascertaining mortality, it is necessary to consider the quality of
the follow-up (i.e. the method employed to determine whether
subjects are alive or dead at the end of a study), the
completeness of the follow-up procedure, the availability of
death certificates or other records that list causes of death,
and the length of the follow-up period. Finally, analysis of
results depends on the appropriateness of the external control
group employed in the study, the availability of an internal
control group, whether the study takes into account the delay,
or latency periods associated with disease development, the
use of appropriate statistics, demonstration of an exposure
gradient, and a discussion of possible sources of bias. These

144
factors are discussed at length in various epidemiological
publications.

Table 7.3. Assessing the Quality of Historical Cohort
Studies

1. Definition of the Study Cohort
(a) Method of selection
(b) Criteria for inclusion or exclusion
(c) Extent to which all cohort members were
considered
(d) Size of the cohort
2. Quantification of Exposure
(a) Detail in work history files
(b) Extent of industrial hygiene data
(c) Quality of industrial hygiene data
(d) Consideration of confounding factors
3. Ascertainment of Mortality
(a) Quality of follow-up technique
(b) Completeness of follow-up
(c) Availability of death certificates or other records to
determine the cause of death
(d) Length of follow-up

145

4. Analysis of Results
(a) Suitability of the external control group
(b) Availability of an internal control group
(c) Allowance for latency effects
(d) Use of appropriate statistics
(e) Demonstration of an exposure gradient
(f) Discussion of possible biases
Source: ACOHOS, 1983
7.4.3 Quantifying Risks
There are a few standard equations used in epidemiology to
determine if the study population is at an increased risk or has
an increased number of cases of the disease in question
compared to a standard population.
To determine if the observed rate is excessive, a risk ratio,
or relative risk should be calculated. This is shown in Figure
7.1 these are usually calculated from cohort studies. Data
from case-control studies approximate the relative risk by a
calculation known as an odds ratio.

146
Figure 7.1: Definition and Calculation of Rates of Disease
and Risk Ratios

RATE OF DISEASE: Number of cases of disease in population at risk
Number of persons in population at risk

EXPRESSED AS: Number of cases
100 or 1000, etc. persons at risk
EXAMPLE: 50 cases = 20 .
2500 persons at risk 1000

RISK RATIO:
Rate of disease in population with the risk factor
Rate of disease in population without the risk factor
(comparison population)

EXPRESSED AS: A numerical ratio (1.5,3.0 etc. indicating that risk of
disease in the exposed (or at risk) population is
1.5,3.0, etc. times greater than that in the
unexposed (or not at risk) population

EXAMPLE: 20/1000 = 2.0
10/1000

A risk ratio of 1.0 means that the rate of the problem (or
outcome of interest) in the group being studied is not different
from the rate of the problem in the general population. A risk
ratio of greater than two or three is usually considered
important. For example, a risk ratio of five would mean that

147
the populations with the risk factor (e.g. those who are
exposed to asbestos) are five times more likely to have or get
the disease (e.g. lung cancer) than the population without the
risk factor (e.g. those who were not exposed to asbestos).
A risk ratio is the most widely used from of risk measure. It is
defined as the ratio of the risk of disease or death among the
exposed to the risk among the unexposed. Other measures
of risk, which can be derived from epidemiological studies, are
defined in Box 7.1. The risk difference is the absolute
difference between two risks. It demonstrates the excess risk
of the health problem in the exposed population. This is also
known as the incremental risk. The attributable fraction
(exposed) describes the proportion of new cases of a disease
in the exposed population due to the exposure, i.e. the
proportion by which the incidence rate of the outcome among
the exposed would be reduced if the exposure were
eliminated. The attributable fraction (population)
describes the proportion of new cases of a disease in the
whole population due to the exposure, i.e. the proportion by
which the incidence rate of the outcome among the entire
population would be reduced if the exposure were eliminated.

148

BOX 7.1
Common Measures of Risk Derivable from Epidemiological
Studies
Risk Difference = E U
Risk Ratio = E
U
Attributable Fraction (Exposed) = (E-U) =(through mathematics) (RR-1)
E RR
Attributable Fraction (Population) = I U = [p(RR-1)] .
I [p(RR-1)+1]
Where U = incidence (or mortality) in the unexposed group;
E = incidence (or mortality) in the exposed group;
P = prevalence in the total population;
I = incidence in the total population;
RR = Risk Ratio

Odds ratio (OR) can be calculated as follows ( 2 x 2 table) :
Disease
Yes No
Exposed Yes A B
No C D

OR = AD
BC

149
The most frequently employed method of evaluating mortality
in an occupational epidemiological study is to calculate the
standardized mortality ratio (SMR) for the group. The SMR
is the ratio of the observed deaths in a group divided by the
number of deaths that would normally be expected in a group
with a similar age distribution.
SMR = Observed number of deaths (or events) in the study populationx100% .
Expected number of deaths (or events) if the study population had the same
age and gender composition as the comparison (e.g. national) population

The denominator of the SMR (e.g. the expected number of
deaths) is computed as follows:
1. A calculation is made of the person-years at risk in the
cohort (the number of individuals in the cohort multiplied
by the number of years that each individual has been
followed).
2. The figure obtained is multiplied by the expected mortality
rate for the disease(s) being considered. The expected
mortality rates can be obtained from national population
statistics.
An SMR of 130 for a particular cause of death indicates that
there was a 30% greater mortality of that disease found than
was actually expected.
Since these measurements of risk are statistical, we can not
be sure that the observations in a study did not occur by
chance. The statistical significance of these measures are

150
usually expressed in a confidence interval. For example, if a
number falls within a 95% confidence interval, one can be
95% sure that the ratio is correct. That also means that there
is a 5% chance that the studys results occurred by chance.
The width of the confidence interval depends on the number
of cases observed, the size of the population in the study, and
the variability of the comparison or expected rates. These
issues are discussed at greater length in Basic Epidemiology,
Environmental Epidemiology, and other WHO publications.
7.4.4. Study Difficulties and the Determinants of
Causation
Some form of analytical epidemiological study is usually
necessary to establish the cause of a disease, although
descriptive studies can give a strong indication of causation at
times. The choice of study depends on the particular situation.
It will vary according to the nature of the disease in question,
its frequency in the population, the frequency of postulated
risk factors, the availability of resources, the experience and
preference of the environmental health professionals
available, among other things. (See publications such as
Environmental Epidemiology, WHO, for more details.)

151
In determining the degree of weight that should be placed on
the evidence obtained from an epidemiological study, it is
necessary to distinguish between the concepts of
association and causation. A causal relationship implies that
the disease has been shown to be actually induced by the
environmental agent. There are numerous reports in scientific
literature alleging links between environmental agents and
disease outcome. Therefore, guidelines are needed to asses
the likelihood that the association is a cause-and-effect
relationship. The most widely accepted were originally
conceived by British statistician Sir Austin Bradford Hill, and
are shown in Table 7.4. These guidelines are not absolute,
but are useful in achieving consensus about whether a known
risk factor is likely a true cause of the disease in question.

152
Table 7.4: Tests of Causation

Temporal relation: Does the cause precede the effect?
(essential)
Plausibility: Is the association consistent with other
knowledge?
Mechanism of action: Is there evidence from experimental
animals?
Consistency: Have similar results been shown in other
studies?
Strength: what is the strength of the association between
the cause and the effect? (relative risk)
Dose-response relationship: Is increased exposure to the
possible cause associated with increased effect?
Reversibility: Does the removal of a possible cause lead
to reduction of disease risk?
Study design: Is the evidence based on a strong study
design?
Judging the evidence: How many lines of evidence lead to
the conclusion?
Source: Beagle Hole et al., 1993

153
The main weakness of epidemiological studies about
environmental pollutants is that they are relatively inefficient in
proving that exposure to a particular substance is associated
with the health effects observed. A major limitation of most
studies is the statistical possibility that a real association with
be detectable in the study. For example, in order to detect a
two-fold increase in major congenital malformations (with 95%
certainty that an increase found was not a chance finding, i.e.
=.05; =0.20), more than 300 live births would have to be
studied, as shown in table e.5.
7.5. Hazard identification in the field
Based on toxicological and epidemiological data, potential
health effects of hazardous substances can be indicated.
These research methods applied to identify environmental
hazards have been introduced. However, recognizing hazards
in a specific situation requires a different approach. More
often, it is done by monitoring purchases of toxic substances
and by conducting health hazard evaluations and hazard
audits, both of which involve walking through the plant (or
community facility) and investigating all operations. The
difference between the two is that in a health hazard
evaluation the walk-through is intended to identify the cause
of a particular problem but in a hazard audit all potential
hazards are systematically examined.

154
7.5.1. Occupational Environment
In the workplace it can be relatively easy to make an inventory
of all potential hazards. This is made easier by an accurate
registration or tracking system of all chemicals that are
frequently used or stored, which unfortunately is not always
the case. In order to make an inventory of chemical hazards,
product identity is, of course, crucial. From knowledge of
which product is used one may then learn what is in it and
what constituents are hazardous. Identifying the chemicals in
a product may be difficult if the manufacturer is not required
by law to list ingredients, or if the material is not labeled
properly, or if the composition of the product is protected as a
trade secret.
7.5.2. General Environment
In contrast to the occupational environment, the identity of
chemical hazards is usually difficult in uncontrolled
environments, such as illegal dumping sites or abandoned
industrial locations. For example, the chemical hazards at a
suspected soil contamination may be almost anything. One
way is to check whether there is information within the
community regarding former industrial or other activities at the
suspected location. Based on the results of such an inquiry
further research can be streamlined in a specific direction.
However, if no records exist or no industrial activities can be

155
described by former workers, the situation becomes far more
difficult. In such a situation, chemical analysis of samples will
have to be conducted to determine the nature of the
contamination. Since it is too costly to screen for all possible
contaminants, chemical analysis has to be concentrated on
specific marker components.
7.6. The relationship between dose and
health Outcome
7.6.1. Dose-Effect and Dose-Response
Relationships
The terms dose-response and dose-effect are often used as
being the same in meaning. Strictly speaking, however, dose-
response relationship describes the relationship between the
proportion of individuals in an exposed group that
demonstrate a defined effect, and the dose. A dose-effect
relationship describes the relationship between the severity of
a health effect and the dose.
A hierarchy of effects on health can be identified for most
hazards, ranging from acute illness and death to chronic and
lingering illnesses, from minor and temporary ailments to
temporary behavioral or physiological changes, as shown in
Table 7.5.

156
Table 7.5: Range of Effects on Human Health Due to
Environmental Exposure
_________________________________________________
Premature death of many individuals
Premature death of any individual
Sever acute illness or major disability
Chronic debilitating disease
Minor disability
Temporary minor illness
Discomfort
Behavioral changes
Temporary emotional effects
Minor physiological change

Dose-response relationships are considerably different for
non-carcinogens (thought to have a threshold) and
carcinogens (thought to be non-threshold) as discussed
further below.

157
7.7. Human exposure assessment
7.7.1 Options in Approach
Human exposure is defined as the opportunity for absorption
into the body or action on the body as a result of coming into
contact with a chemical, biological or physical agent. The
various routes of exposure have already been introduced. The
units of exposure to a chemical are usually concentration
multiplied by time (e.g. mg/ml/hr). The term total exposure
implies that an attempt is being made to take into account all
exposures to the contaminant regardless of media or route of
exposure.
The critical parameter with respect to health is actually the
dose, since it directly identifies the amount of the contaminant
that has the potential to attack the target organ. (This can be
made even more specific. Internal dose refers to the amount
of the contaminant absorbed in body tissues upon inhalation,
ingestion or absorption. Total dose is the term used to
indicate the sum of all doses received by a person of a
contaminant over a given time interval from interaction with all
media.
As dose is difficult to measure, the parameter usually
considered is the exposure. Therefore, regulators usually
establish rules and regulations which are directly linked to

158
reducing exposure, as opposed to dose. Estimates can then
be made of the dose, based on the exposure, various
assumptions, and animal models. While such estimates often
have large uncertainties, it is a more practical parameter than
dose. In any case, it has to be clear that measuring exposure,
it is a more practical parameter than dose. In any case, it has
to be clear that measuring exposure, not concentration, is the
critical parameter since it is more directly related to health
effects. To put it simply, if someone is not inhaling, ingesting,
or absorbing the pollutant there is no exposure and hence no
health effect. It should therefore be stressed that in all
investigations the measurement of exposure be assessed and
not just concentration. Exposure is usually considered for just
one medium at a time. However, any risk assessment which
is intended to maximize mitigation strategies must establish
the relative risks from all media and routes of entry.
Environmental monitoring measures concentrations of
contaminants to which individuals may be exposed. Biological
monitoring usually measure dose. Each of these can be
further subdivided. Area sampling measures concentrations
without taking into account the extent of actual exposure,
while personal sampling more directly measures the
concentrations to which an individual is exposed throughout a
period of time. Similarly, biological monitoring can also be
further subdivided in a way that reflects extent, to which the
biological marker being sampled is a measure of dose, a

159
marker of effect, or a marker of susceptibility. Exposure
markers are of greatest interest to regulators and those
charged with the need to control exposures. Clinicians are
generally more interested in markers of health or
susceptibility. The marker of most interest to epidemiologists
depends on the nature of the epidemiological study.
7.7.2. Personal Exposure Monitoring
Personal air monitoring devices provide direct measurements
of concentrations of air contaminants in the breathing zone of
an individual. Generally, samplers worn by subjects record
time-integrated concentrations or they collect time-integrated
samples. These may be devices that read concentrations
directly (in the case of the former) or ones that require lab
analysis (as is generally the case in the latter). Samplers may
be either active (requiring a pump to move air) or passive
(require no pump and collect the airborne contaminant by
diffusion).
With respect to waterborne contaminants, a direct
measurement entails sampling from the water source, like a
drinking tap, or from the water actually drunk. With respect to
food, duplicate meals are analyzed. In this method, an
individual must collect a second portion of everything
consumed. This duplicate meal is then homogenized and
analyzed for the compounds of interest.

160
Direct measurements of skin exposures in an occupational
environment have been established by attaching patches on
the skin. After a working day, the patches can be removed,
extracted and analyzed. The effectiveness of using gloves to
protect skin exposure can be established in a comparable
way. Cotton gloves worm underneath latex gloves can be
analyzed for specific chemical agents after handling. The
results would indicate whether and to what extent the
compound of interest can penetrate the gloves. Based on
these results, it can be indicated how frequently gloves should
be changed in order to prevent exposure.
7.7.3..Biological Monitoring
In biological monitoring, the contaminant of interest, its
metabolite or the product of interaction between it and some
target molecule or cell is measured in the relevant body
tissue. If lead is the contaminant of interest, for example, area
sampling can be conducted to determine the operations
associated with the greatest lead concentration; personal air
monitoring for lead exposure may be conducted; blood lead
levels may be drawn on exposed workers to measure dose; or
a marker of effect such as free erythrocyte protoporphyrin
(FEP) may be evaluated.

161
Biological monitoring for susceptibility markers is a highly
controversial area. Markers of susceptibility may relate to
induced variations in absorption, metabolism, and response to
environmental agents. For example, measurement of airway
reactivity to inhaled broncho-constrictors can be used as a
marker of susceptibility to asthma.
Examples of some biological markers of exposure are shown
in Table 7.6. Recently there has been much interest in the
application of markers in a rapidly developing field sometimes
called molecular epidemiology. There has been particular
enthusiasm in the study of DNA and protein adducts.
However, chemical methods to detect and quantify adducts
often rely on costly methods which require highly
sophisticated and expensive instrumentation (such as gas
chromatography and mass spectrometry) operated by highly
skilled technologists. Furthermore, most of these methods still
have to be validated and can not be considered and applied
as routine measurements.

162
Table 7.6: Examples of Useful Markers of Exposure

Substance Biological Marker
Carbon Monoxide
Lead
Pentachlorophenol (PCP)
Alcoholic Beverages
Volatile Organics (VOCs)
COHb in blood
Pb in blood
PCP in urine
Ethanol in exhaled breath
VOCs in exhaled breath
7.7.4. The Indirect Approaches to Estimation of
Exposure
Exposure assessment surveys, whether they be
questionnaires, telephone interviews or measurements,
usually attempt to obtain information in four areas:
demographic profile, health status, environmental factors and
time-activity. There are three general approaches for
obtaining time-activity information. One is called the
estimation approach, in which an estimate is made of the
amount of time spent by study participants in various activities
during the time period of interest. The second approach uses
time activity diaries in which participants are asked to
describe all of the activities in which they were engaged
during the study period. The third approach is the
observational approach in which the participants are
monitored by outside observers. While this adds a degree of

163
completeness and accuracy to the data, many people may
refuse to participate in a study in which their activities are
being monitored. Using data on concentrations in various
environments and human activity data as input variables,
calculation models can predict exposures at individual or
population level.
In order to estimate exposures via different exposure routes,
standard values for the amount of inhaled air and ingestion
of drinking-water and soil can be used. One set of such
standard values are presented in Table 7.7. for various age
groups.
Table 7.7: Recommended standard Values for Daily
Intake of Air, Water and soil
Age
(years)
Air Inhalation
(m
3
/day)
1

Water Ingestion
2

(L/day)
Soil Ingestion
(mg/day)
Total Soil
Adhered (mg/day)
0-<0.5

0.5-<5
5-<12
12-
<20
20
+

2

5
12
21
23
F:0/0
NBF:0.2/0.8
0.2/0.8
0.3/0.9
0.5/1.3
0.4/1.5
35

50
35
20
20
2200

3500
5800
9100
8700
Source: Health and Welfare Canada. Canadian Environmental Protection
Act: First Edition. Environmental Health Directorate, 1992

164
1. 1000 liters = 1 m
3

2. The first value represents straight tap water only, while
the second includes tap water-based beverages such as
tea, coffee and reconstituted soft drinks. Exclusively
breast-fed infants (BF) do not require additional liquids.
Estimates for non-breast-fed infants (NBF) are based on
volume consumed as drinking-water, and on drinking of
750ml/day of formula made from powdered formula and
tap water for total drinking-water.
7.7.5. Estimating Inhalation Exposure
With respect to air measurements, outdoor measurements
have been an integral part of environmental monitoring in
many countries for several decades. However, indoor air has
been ignored until recently. Thus, while many air pollutants
are at higher concentrations indoors than outside, indoor air
quality monitoring procedures are less well-developed. This
will be discussed further in subsequent chapters. In order to
estimate an inhalation dose, an estimate of the amount of air
a person breathes in a day is required. (Standard values for
the amount of air inhaled by various age groups are
presented in Table 7.7.)
A persons sex, age, and the amount of physical activity are
major factors affecting the volume of air breathed. Other
factors influencing the volume of air breathed include:

165
temperature, altitude, background air pollution, and a persons
weight, height, whether he or she smokes, and whether the
person has suffered from heart disease. To calculate the
inhalation dose, it is assumed that 100% of the contaminant is
absorbed after contact. This always results in an
overestimation of the internal dose. Table. 7.8.
Table 7.8: Calculating Intake through Inhalation
This can be estimated with the equation:
EDI+ (CxIRxEF) /BW
Where: EDI = estimated dose through air inhalation: The air inhalation dose
is expressed as milligrams of the contaminant inhaled per kg
of body weight per day (mg/kg/day).
C = Concentration of the contaminant in the air, in milligrams per
cubic meter of air (mg/m
3
).
IR + Inhalation rate: The amount of air a person breathes in a
day, in cubic meters m
3
/day). Standard values are given in
Table 3.10. If contaminated air is breathed for only part of a
day, then inhalation rate is adjusted accordingly.
EF = Exposure factor: Indicates how often the individual has been
exposed to the contaminant over a lifetime (unit less). See
other texts for discussion of exposure factors.)
BW = Body weight: The average body weight in kilograms (kg)
based on an individuals age group. Standard values are
given in various publications.

166
Box 3.6 utilizes the above information in a concrete example.
BOX 3.6
Estimating Lead Intake Via Inhalation by a Child
Task: estimate the cumulative dose of inhaled lead for an 11-year-old child who
has been exposed for two hours per day every day since birth, to lead in outdoor
air at a concentration of 8x10
-5
mg/m
3
. Exposure ended at age 12 when the
family moved to another area.
The cumulative dose is calculated as follows:
The inhalation rate (IR) of contaminated air is a fraction of the total air breathed,
in this case 2 hours of exposure /day x total daily amount of air inhaled. The total
daily amount of air inhaled changes as a child grows (see Table 3.11).
Multiplying each of these values by 2/24 (0.083) gives an IR of 0.166m
3
/day,
0.415 m
3
/day, and 0.996m
3
/day for each of the three age periods.
The exposure factors for these periods are calculated as follows:
Age (yrs) Exposure Factor
0-<.05 183 days of exposure in first six months/4380 days in lifetime (12 years)=0.042
0.5-<5 1642 days of exposure in second period/4380 days in lifetime (12 years)=0.375
5-<12 2555 days of exposure in second period/4380 days in lifetime (12 years)=0.583

Age
(yrs)

Concentration

IR

EF

BW
Daily Inhalation Dose
(mg/kg/day)
0-<.05
0.5-<5
5-<12
8x10
-3
8x10
-3
8x10
-3

0.166
0.415
0.996
0.042
0.375
0.583
7
13
27
7.97x10
-5

9.58x10
-5

17.21x10
-5

3.58x10
-4
daily inhalation dose of lead is thus estimated to be 3.58x10
-4
g/kg/day.
Modified from ATSDR, 1992

167
A very similar equation to that in Table 7.8 can be applied to
the other routes of exposure. The units, of course, will
change, as will change, as will the terminology. For example,
with respect to ingestion, the inhalation rate becomes the
consumption rate. The total dose will be the sum of all the
individual doses due to the separate routes of exposure.
7.7.6. Principles of Population Sampling
To assist with the selection of a population sample for human
exposure assessment, the following guidance is provided.
A sampling frame must either: (a) list all the people in the
target population; or (b) list areas and the approximate
number of people linked to each area. If the people in the
target population are mobile, they may have to be linked to
the areas where they eat or sleep. Developed countries
usually have a central statistical bureau that maintains
registries or conducts population census, which may from an
ideal frame for sampling from the general population. As
these listings are rarely complete, sampling frames often need
to be conducted in stages, as discussed below, with these
data constituting a sampling frame often need to be
conducted in stages, as discussed below, with these data
constituting a sampling frame for the initial stages of a multi-
stage sample. In developing countries, where census data are
not generally available, special efforts may be needed to

168
estimate the population linked to the areas in order to
construct a sampling frame.
If the target population consists only of people with specific
characteristics, lists of these people may be available. For
example, if the target population consists of lactating mothers,
clinics in the area may be able to provide lists of mothers who
have recently had deliveries. If available lists do not provide
nearly complete coverage of the target population, samples
from the lists must be supplemented with samples from other,
possibly less efficient, frames that provide more complete
coverage of the target population (see UNEP/WHO, 1993).
7.7.7. Principles of Environmental Sampling
The potential for errors in environmental exposure
assessment is large. Errors may occur with respect to the
representative ness of sampling sites, the method of sample
collection, the analytic procedure, and data handling.
The representative error refers to whether the sample
collected represents the average concentration in the media
under study. For example, an outdoor monitor on the roof of a
multistoried building may not yield the concentration data
needed to estimate average community air exposure. Even if
sampling is conducted at a reasonable site, there is always a
question as to how representative it is of exposure to
residents at different times or when wind blows from different

169
directions. Portable sampling in various directions and at
variable distances from a fixed site can often give guidance
on this matter.
Sample collection errors (e.g. for water, soil, or food samples),
can usually be minimized simply by using containers which
are free of the contaminant of interest. Air samples are more
difficult to properly collect and there is considerably more
controversy as to the appropriate instrument to use in various
situations. Industrial hygienists therefore obtain considerable
training in techniques of proper sample collection, and only
people trained in these techniques should conduct air
sampling.
Analytical errors may arise from the use of improper
calibration procedures, variations in temperatures or line
voltage in the laboratory, operator mistakes, as well as the
intrinsic imprecision and inaccuracy of the analytical method
chosen.
Finally, errors in data manipulation may occur at a number of
stages, and often relate to the number of individuals involved
in obtaining an environmental measurement. These
specialists include the field person who collects the sample,
the laboratory technician who does the analysis, the computer
programmer who enters the data, and the epidemiologist who,
often with the help of the statistician, interprets the data.

170
Quality assurance programs have therefore been developed
and much international guidance has been provided on this
subject. Procedures include the use of standard reference
materials when calibrating instruments, keeping the line
voltage and temperature constant, conducting duplicate
analyses of some of the collected samples, etc. Sometimes
the above activities are considered quality control operational
activities. Quality assurance refers to activities that are
conducted after the data have been collected, to determine
the precision and accuracy of the data, and to sort out
improper data. This uses methods such as interlaboratory
comparisons, using different analytical methods to analyze
the same sample, the use of various statistical procedures to
highlight bad data or extreme values, etc. the overall term
quality assurance generally includes both quality assurance
and quality control activities.
7.7.8. Ensuring Adequate Sample Size
Determining an appropriate sample size requires balancing
precision and cost constraints. Guidelines for calculating
sample sizes needed for accurate estimates are available in
many textbooks and other WHO publications including
UNEP/WHO 1993. Even if the final sample sizes are
determined primarily by cost constraints, rather than for
desired precision, it is essential to calculate the precision that
is expected for important parameter estimates and the power

171
expected for important hypothesis tests. There must,
however, be minimum standards for reliability of inferences. In
general, a sample size of 50 is the minimum acceptable for
human exposure monitoring studies, with a range of 250 or
more people considered desirable. In preparing reports based
on sampling with borderline or minimal sample sizes, it is
essential for the problems regarding inferences to the target
population to be discussed. These include: (a) Unreliable
point estimates, (b) Unreliable estimates of precision, and (c)
lack of normality for interval estimates and hypothesis tests
(see UNEP/WHO 1993 for greater detail).
7.8. Health risk characterization
7.8.1. General Approach Summarized
Risk characterization synthesized the first three components
of the risk assessment process: hazard identification, dose-
response assessment and exposure assessment, and
estimates the incidence and severity of potential adverse
effects. The major assumptions, scientific judgments and
uncertainties should be identified to fully understand the
validity of the estimated risk.
Risk characterization (or risk estimation as it is also known)
may be subdivided into four different steps as indicated in
Table 7.9.

172
Table 7.9: Consecutive steps in Health Risk
Characterization
Exposure = pollutant concentration/ exposure
duration (or it is directly measured by integrated
sampling).
Dose = Exposure (1) x dosimetery factors (absorption
rate, inhalation rate, etc.) body weight or surface area.
Lifetime individual risk = Dose (2) x risk
characterization factor (carcinogenic potency,
noncarcinogenic threshold [e.g. NOEL] or severity
[e.g. NOAEL], with
Risk to exposed population = Individual risk (3) x
number in exposed population (this should take into
consideration age, and other susceptibility factors,
population activities, etc.).

7.9. Health in environmental impact
assessment (EIA)
A part from health risk assessment in field situations it is also
important to consider potential health effects of projects or
activities which are planned for the future. However, health
effects have often received inadequate attention during the
formulation of development policies and planning of projects.
In many countries where procedures exist to assess

173
environmental impacts, only (or predominantly) impacts on
the biophysical environment are assessed. When these
parameters conform to the legally established environmental
standards it is assumed that human health effects are not
likely to occur.
In principle the assessment of adverse health impacts follows
an approach similar to the risk assessment frame work
discussed in the previous sections of this chapter. First,
potential hazards associated with the project which require
further investigation have to be identified. Subsequently,
emissions have to be calculated or estimated using
technological specifications of the project. Based on these
data, emission concentrations, exposure and total dose
should be calculated using mathematical models which have
been developed specifically for these purposes.
As an environmental impact assessment (EIA) is a practical
process, it is not generally possible to undertake additional
primary research simultaneously. Consequently, conclusions
must usually be based on currently accepted scientific
knowledge. Furthermore, no actual measurements can be
performed during the preparation stage of a project, other
than baseline assessments or measurements from pilot
projects. Therefore, extrapolation of data regarding emissions,
exposures and (if available) health effects from similar
projects can be extremely useful. These extrapolations from

174
one situation to another with different geographical and
demographic features, as well as exposure characteristics,
usually require a number of assumptions, and therefore again
specific expertise is also required.
The health component of environmental impact assessments
should incorporate more than the best scientific information
available. It should draw upon community-based information
and traditional knowledge of native peoples and others in the
community. And it should recognize that many projects have
beneficial as well as adverse effects on health and well being.
By creating jobs and providing other economic benefits that
contribute to a better standard of living, health may be greatly
improved because of the project in question. As noted in
chapter 1, economic well-being has been repeatedly linked
with longevity and other indicators of health, because, among
other reasons, people with adequate income can afford to eat
balanced diets and live healthy lifestyles. Adverse effects on
health may be disproportionately experienced by people who
do not share in a projects benefits. Thus the health
components of the EIA should assess who will benefit and
who may experience adverse effects. If potential adverse
effects are identified, recommendations for mitigation and
follow-up measures should be included in the environmental
impact statement (EIS) which the projects proponent is
required to do. EIAs may also consider alternatives to the
project, including the potential effects on health of not allowing

175
the project to proceed. Although there may be jurisdictional
considerations regarding which government department is
responsible for occupational versus public health in some
countries, both components are essential to ascertain the
potential benefits and adverse effects of a proposal.

176

1. List and describe Environmental factors of human
exposures?
2. What are the advantages and disadvantages of
environmental and biological Monitoring respectively?
3. Describe the concept of EIA?

177
CHAPTER EIGHT
SAMPLING AND ANALYSIS
to:
2. Define what air pollution means and other related
terms
3. Enumerate different types of air pollutants
4. List physical forms of pollutants
8.2. Introduction
Some air pollution problems, such as foul odors, are relatively
straightforward to manage and can be dealt with as a public
nuisance. Industrial and urban air pollution is more
complicated, and effective control requires (a) identifying and
measuring the pollutants that are most responsible for the
problem, and (b) reducing or preventing their emission at the
source.
Control of air pollution requires the identification and control of
individual sources of emissions to air in order to prevent the
accumulation of air pollution in a certain region, or air shed.

178
An air shed is a space, such as a valley, basin, or plain, within
which air mixes relatively freely but beyond which movement
is relatively slower, and typically depends on winds. In order
to improve air quality within an air shed it is necessary to
control all the sources within the air shed.
In order to set targets for the control of air pollution, it is
necessary to set standards or guidelines. The word standard
implies a set of laws or regulations that limit allowable
emissions or that do not permit degradation (deterioration) of
air quality beyond a certain limit. The word guideline implies a
set of recommended levels against which to compare air
quality from one region to another over time.
8.3. Ambient Air Quality Standards and
Guidelines
Ambient air quality standards or guidelines are levels of
general air quality in the region that the jurisdiction
responsible cannot allow to be exceeded. Sometimes the
penalty for this is withholding of funds from the national
government or some administrative penalty. Ambient air
quality is monitored in various places within the region and
when the level of a particular pollutant is exceeded, this is
called an exceedance. The number of exceedances, the
average levels of air pollution, and the peak levels during one
hour may all be used as indicators in air quality standards or

179
guidelines. Ambient air quality standards may include a non-
degradation policy. This means that not only should air
pollution not exceed certain levels, but it cannot be permitted,
on average, to get worse over time even within the allowable
levels.
Table 8.1: Relative Contribution of Different Emissions
and Respective Pollutants in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Particulate Sulfur Carbon Nitrogen
Matter Oxides Monoxide Oxides
Vehicles 40% 64% 94% 92 %
Industry 10% 36% 3% 7%
Other 50% 0% 3% 1%
Source: Stephens et al., 1995
The level of government that sets the standards or guidelines
is not necessarily the level of government that enforces them.
The United States, for example, has standards that are set by
an agency of the Federal Government, the US Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA). (See Table 10.) The EPA has
divided outdoor air pollutants into two categories: criteria
pollutants and hazardous pollutants which are mostly
carcinogens such as asbestos. Standards for hazardous
chemicals usually take the form of maximal concentrations to
provide a margin of safety. They can be enforced as laws but

180
this is usually done at the state level. Some states have set
stricter environmental standards. Canada, on the other hand,
has guidelines that are recommended by a federal
department, Health Canada, but any action to be taken is the
responsibility of the provinces, which may set local standards.
On paper, Canadas guidelines are much stricter, but they
must be understood to be targets, not rules. Because air
quality in Canada is not generally as polluted (with some local
exceptions), the use of guidelines allows greater flexibility to
local authorities to deal with the problem. If the pollution
problem were more severe, the adoption of national air quality
standards could permit tighter legal enforcement and stricter
regulation across the country. Table 11 presents the revised
Air Quality Guidelines for Europe recommended by the WHO.

181
Table 8.2: Air Quality Standards, United States, 1989
Pollutant Primary Standards Average Health Effects
Time
Ozone 0.12 ppm (235 g/m
3
1hr Decrements in lung function, possibly
Chronic lung disease
PM10 50 g/m
3
Annual (arithmetic Chronic respiratory disease, altered
150 g/m
3
Mean); 24hr lung function in children
SO2 0.03 ppm(80 g/m
3
) Annual (arithmetic Exacerbation of asthma
0.14 ppm (365 g/m
3
) Mean); 24 hr
NO2 0.053 ppm(100 g/m
3
) Annual (arithmetic Increased respiratory
Mean) infections, acute lung disease
Carbon 9 ppm (10mg/m
3
) 8 hr Aggravation of coronary artery disease
Monoxide 35 ppm (40 mg/m
3
) 1 hr
Lead 1.5 g/m
3
Quarterly average Development effects on children
Standards may take two forms: ambient air quality standards and emission standards. Ambient air quality is the general
quality of air outdoors in the region. Guidelines are usually for ambient air quality only. Emissions standards set the amount
of pollution that is allowed to come from a particular source.

182
Table 8.3: WHO Air Quality Guidelines for Europe,
Revised 1994

Compound Guideline Value Averaging
Time
Ozone 120g/m
3
(0.06 ppm) 8 hr
Nitrogen dioxide 200g/m
3

(0.11 ppm) 1 hr
40 to 50g/m
3
(0.021 to 0.026 ppm) Annual
Sulfur dioxide 500 g/m
3
(0.175 ppm) 10 min
125g/m
3
(0.044 ppm) 24 hr
50g/m
3
(0.017 ppm) Annual
Particulate Matter a
Carbon monoxide 100g/m
3
(90 ppm)
b
15 min
60 g/m
3
(50 ppm) 30 min
30 g/m
3
(25 ppm) 1 hr
10 g/m
3
(10 ppm) 8 hr
a. No guideline values were set for particulate matter because there is no evident
threshold for effects on morbidity and mortality.
b. The guideline is to prevent carboxyhaemoglobin levels in the blood from
exceeding 2.5%. The values above are mathematical estimates of CO
concentrations and averaging times at which these concentrations should be
achieved.
Ambient air quality standards are set on the basis of known
adverse effects that occur when pollution levels reach the
level of the standard. Some standards are set on the basis of
damage to vegetation and materials, others on the basis of

183
health effects or visibility. In recent years, standards have
been increasingly set on the basis of human health effects,
after an exhaustive review of scientific studies. In order to
protect the health of the public, air quality standards today are
often set by conducting a risk assessment that predicts what
the expected number of cases of cancer or of death might be
at a given level of air pollution. When the risk appears to be
negligible, the standard is set as close to that level as is
feasible. These are called risk-based standards. However,
they depend on studies that provide a reasonable guide to
risk at low levels of exposure. The studies that support these
standards have often been criticized because they do not
necessarily protect the most susceptible members of the
population. Recent studies have suggested that the standards
for small particulates (PM
10
) that had been adopted in most
developed countries, and which were thought to be safe, may
still be associated with increased death rates from a variety of
diseases. This is why the WHO guidelines for Europe do not
specify a level for particulates.

184

1. Explain the importance of having guidelines and
standards.
2. Describe what guideline means.
3. Describe what standards means.
4. Explain the difference between guidelines and standards.

185
CHAPTER NINE
AIR POLLUTION PREVENTION AND
CONTROL
to:
1. Define what air pollution prevention and control
means
3. Enumerate different types of air pollution prevention
methods
9.2. Introduction to the course
The reduction of energy consumption, use of non-
conventional sources for energy and natural source of energy
and maintenance green belts is the key to manage air
pollution problems. The measures for prevention and control
of air pollution are given below:-
Increasing the community awareness about air
pollution, sources and effects of pollution and how to
avoid them.

186
Substitution measures- The current industrial or
combusting practices which produce pollutants are
replaced by non-hazardous or less hazardous
process. Substitute electric power in place of fossil
fuels, coal substituted by the biogas plants. Use of
solar energy and hydraulic operations for industrial
purposes should be encouraged. The use of solar
energy and hydraulic operations for industrial
purposes should be encouraged. The use of
smokeless churlish in place of age old churlish
dramatically improves indoor air quality.
Containment action: Escape of pollutants in the air
from the industrial operations can be controlled by
operating local exhaust ventilation, trapping and then
the disposal of pollutants.
Dilution: Maintenance of green belt between and
around the industries, in between industries and
civilian habitat filter a lot of air pollutants and
maintains air quality.
Legislative action: The factories act and smoke
Nuisance Act lay down measures for height of
chimney stacks, use of arrestors, for industrial areas.
The lead levels in petrol can be minimized or leadless
patrol can be made available through governmental
regulatory approach.

187
Active community involvement: Regular maintenance
of automobile vehicles; use of arrestors to the exhaust
from automobiles; complete combustion of coke, coal
and wood; screening of windows; use of LPG gas;
proper effective ventilation in home and at work place,
use of solar and biogas energy, community action for
collection and final disposal of refuse and solid
wastes, maintenance of green belts, forbidding
tobacco smoking, use of smokeless churlish,
maintenance public places; cleanliness of streets and
open areas and a lot many actions can be undertaken
for control and prevention of air pollution.
9.3 Control of Ambient Air Pollution
Control of emissions at each source is the key to managing
air quality, but transportation policy, energy policy (such as
the choice of fuels), and sitting/ zoning of facilities that may
emit pollution all play a critical role. A major element in the
success of air pollution control is the degree of authority that
can be exerted by the government agency that has this
responsibility. The ability to close or shut down a plant is the
ultimate tool for enforcement agencies, but the ability to fine,
bring lawsuits, and to prosecute offenders is just as important.
Often just the threat of such action motivates the
management of a plant to cooperate and to correct the
problem.

188
Emissions standards (rules about how much pollution a
particular source may emit to the atmosphere) require
periodic inspection and regular monitoring to be effective.
These are generally easier to enforce for stationary sources,
where equipment can be set up on a permanent basis and the
pollution control apparatus can be inspected directly. The
source or facility may require a permit from the government to
operate or may be required to register and to provide regular
reports on the pollution it has generated.
Generally, emissions standards for individual factories, power
plants, or other stationary sources are allocated an allowable
level of emissions based on their past performance and share
of contribution to the regional air shed. They must not exceed
this allowable level of emissions or they will receive a citation
and must pay a fine. (In practice, the fine must be high
enough to deter violations and not to be just another cost of
doing business.) If they are repeat violators, their permit to
operate can be suspended if the law allows.
In some jurisdictions, the entire plant is considered a single
source; if engineers can reduce emissions in one part of the
plant, they are allowed to build new facilities that increase
emissions in another part or to build a new addition to the
plant that may generate new emissions. The overall level of
emissions from the entire plant must not increase, however.
This is called the Bubble concept, because the plant is

189
thought of as being enclosed in a bubble and the air and the
air quality in the bubble cannot be allowed to deteriorate.
Mobile sources are difficult to monitor, however, many
jurisdictions require regular vehicle inspections to ensure that
emissions from each truck or automobile are within
acceptable limits (see Mage and Zali, 1992.) Box
3.summarizes some strategies to address motor vehicle air
pollution.
Dust control methods
1. Local Exhaust
Local exhaust is frequently used at point of high dust
production; when it can be combined with a hooded
enclosure such as ventilation can be quiet effective.
Exhausting the air without dust removal can create dust
load in the outside area that may contaminate the plant
or dilution ventilation may be the best solution.
2. General ventilation with dilution
In instances in which the source s of dust generation are
numerous, widely distributed general or dilution
ventilation may be the best.
3. Recirculation of air
Recirculation of clean air from a dust collector for the
purpose of conserving energy requires careful
consideration because even a well maintained fabric

190
filter dust collect or operating under ideal conditions can
not remove all dusts particles to satisfy the PEL ( less
than one percent quartz/ 10 mg./cubic meter nuisance
dust.
4. Respirable usage
Since most dusts are hazardous to the lungs, respirators
are a common method of primary or secondary
protection. Respirators are appropriate as a primary
control during intermittent maintenance or cleaning
activities when fixed engineering controls may not be
feasible. Respirators can also be used as supplement to
good engineering and work practice control for dusts to
increase employee protection and comfort.
To be effective respirators must be matched to the type
of particulate hazard present. The critical exposure
factors mentioned above (type of dust, length of
exposure, dust size, concentration etc.) determine the
degree of hazard and the type of respirators that should
be employed.

191

Box 3
Motor vehicle Air Pollution: Health Effects and Control Strategies
Studies of human exposures to air pollution from motor vehicles have revealed
the following:
Concentrations of some air pollutants inside motor vehicles and along
roadsides are typically higher than those recorded simultaneously at
fixed-side monitors.
Exposures tend to be higher inside automobiles than in buses and other
vehicles used in public transit.
Priority lanes used to afford speed advantages to buses and car pools
tend to reduce air pollutant exposures.
Concentrations of air pollutants in enclosed settings are similar to outdoor
concentrations in the absence of indoor sources, but tend to lag behind
the peak concentrations observed outdoors. (A notable exception is
commercial buildings attached to inadequately ventilated parking
garages.)
Concentrations of motor vehicle air pollutants decline with greater
distance from the road, suggesting that passengers and vehicles are at
greatest risk, followed by pedestrians and street merchants along
roadsides, and then the general urban population.
Motor vehicle emissions may be reduced by: 1) controlling vehicle
performance, and 2) altering fuel composition. With respect to vehicle
performance, this can be controlled by ensuring that vehicles are designed and

192
built to meet standards. It is also necessary that they be properly maintained.
Proper maintenance, in turn, can be promoted by providing incentives to car
owners to obtain proper maintenance and by marketplace incentives.
Requiring maintenance through a mandatory inspection and maintenance
programme is considered by many to be the most effective incentive for car
owners.
Fuel composition may be controlled as a direct means of controlling emissions,
e.g. reducing the lead content in leaded gasoline or reducing sulfur content to
control sulfate emissions. Studies suggest that gasoline hydrocarbon
emissions decrease significantly with lower fuel sulfur. Control of gasoline
volatility is another strategy for reducing vehicle evaporative and refueling
emissions, especially in areas with warmer climates. Some additives have
been effective in lowering hydrocarbon emissions and carbon monoxide.
Reduction of emissions per vehicle mile traveled can be very effective in
controlling emissions. Strategies in this are include car pooling, increased use
of mass transit, parking restrictions, gas rationing, etc. Policies would therefore
be needed to: create more efficient public transportation systems; increase the
load factor of existing vehicles; shift time of peak traffic (e.g. staggering work
hours); improve circulation using synchronized signals, reduce travel demand,
e.g. by redistribution of urban activities.
Source: Mage and Zali, 1992
In order to effectively manage air quality in an urban region,
an administrative mechanism must be set up that includes
trained inspectors and technical staff who can operate the

193
complicated equipment needed for air quality monitoring and
who can interpret the results. A permitting or registration
system is needed for enforcing emissions standards. Public
education should be very much a part of the duties of the
staff, as should enforcement and monitoring. Many air quality
agencies are operated separately from public health
agencies, often attached to the environmental departments of
government. Ideally, these agencies have the authority to
meet with plant owners or managers before facilities are even
built in order to avoid problems before they occur.
Due to growing public concern, many nations initiated air
quality monitoring in the 1960s. In 1973, the WHO set up a
global programme to assist countries in operational air
pollution monitoring; this project became a part of UNEPs
Global Environmental Monitoring System in 1976. This project
covers some 50 countries, and data from this project suggest
that nearly 900 million people living in urban areas around the
world are exposed to unhealthy levels of sulfur dioxide and
more than one billion people are exposed to excessive levels
of particulate matter.
Some of the general measures of controlling indoor air
pollution are:
Stove design improvement (to increase the efficiency
of complete combustion)
Use of cleaner fuel

194
Improving house design and construction of proper
ventilation
Health Education
Improving standard of living
Ventilation: this might be through opening windows, doors, or
using fans with or without washing or aid, so that there is a
considerable air interchange. It is believed that with in
practical limits of air interchange, there is not apparent effect
up on disease incidence. Practically this method can not be
sued in hospitals or nurseries, unites and otherwise the
incoming air is flattered and conditioned

195
Study Exercise
Air quality management may involve controlling sources of
emissions from industry, transportation, and homes. What
effect on air quality may be expected from national
transportation policies that favor automotive transportation
over mass transit? What may be expected from a national
energy policy that favors the burning of fossil fuels over
hydroelectric or nuclear energy? Does the economic base and
structure of the community have any implications for air
quality in the region? What role does city and regional
planning play in influencing air quality? In the region? What
role does city and regional planning play in influencing air
quality? Use your home community as an example of these
issues, and then compare the situation in another city, town,
or village in your country. A number of initiatives and
suggestions for better management of air resources have
been discussed in this chapter. Try to develop other initiatives
that could be used to promote air quality conservation. These
could be economic, social, legal or physical in nature.

196
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2. Purdom PW, Editor. Environmental health and edition,
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3. World Health Organization. Basic Environmental Health,
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4. World Health Organization. Our planet, out health: report
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Geneva: WHO. 1992
5. The World Bank Development Report 1992: development
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6. Turk J and Turk A. Environmental sciences. 4
th
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Philadelphina: W.B. Saunders Company, 1992.
7. P. Aarne Vesilind (1984) Environmental pollution & control
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nd
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8. J.A Salvato (1992) Environmental Engineering and
sanitation 4
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9. Timmy Katyel. Eatal, Environmental pollution new delhi
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197

10. John A. Troller. Sanitation in food processing 2
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11. Gilbert Introduction to Enginering & Science 2
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13. Bruce N (1999). Lowering exposure of children to indoor
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16. Murray C, Lopez A (Eds) (1996). The Global Burden of
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199
APPENDIX
Annex-1
Weather- man wind measuring reports system
Beaufort
numbers
Map symbol for wind speed
and direction
Speed
M.P.H
Description Specification
0 0 calm Smoke rises vertically
1

1 to 3 Light air Wind direction shown by
drift of smoke
2

4 to 7 Slight breeze Wind flet on face; leaves
rustle; flag stirs
3

8 to 10 Gentel
breeze
Leaves & twigs in constant
motion; wind extends light
flags
4

13 to 18 Moderate
breeze
Dust, loose paper, and
small branches are
moved, flags flap
5

19 to 24 Fresh
breeze
Small trees in leaf begin to
sway; flags ripple
6

25 to 31 Strong
breeze
Large branches in motion;
whistling telegraph wires,
flags beat.
7

32 to 38 Moderate
Gale
Whole tree in motion; flags
are extended.

200

8

39 to 46 Fresh Gale Leaves & twigs in constant
motion; wind extends light
flags
9

47 to 54 Strong gale Slight damage to house
10

55 to 63 Whole gale Trees uprooted; much
damage to house
11

64 to 75 Storm Widespread damage
12

Over 75 Hurricanes Excessive damage

201
Annex-2
Some questions worth asking about fuel, cooking and
ventilation
1. Type of fuel
- Biomass (wood, agriculture waste, grass, leaves, etc
manure, dried dung)
- Biogas
- Wool Alco hole
- Fossil fuel (coal, coke, oil, kerosene, natural gas,
propane)
2. Type of stove
- Stone tripod (hole in the ground, clay and metal)
3. Location
- Inside one room hut (special indoor cooking and
outdoor)
4. Uses
- Cooking only (cooking and heating)
5. Ventilation
- None (windows, hole in roof and chimney)
6. Fuel gathering
- Women ( women and children, men)

202
1. Hours/day fuel gathering?
2. Hours/day at stove?
3. Who cooks, who tend fire?
4. Visible evidence of indoor air pollution?
5. Respiratory symptoms?
6. Person in household, person directly exposed?

203
Annes-3

INDOOR AIR SAMPLING PROCEDURE
I. Gravimetric sampling technique
- Total suspended particulate matter will be measured
by air suction foot pump.
- Measurement is taken at a height > 1 meter roughly
at breathing zone.
- A distance of 1m from outside perimeter
- Filters will be placed in a constant temperature (25
o
C)
for 24 hrs prior to both on and off weights
- The difference of the first weighing and the second
weighing will be the weight of particulate matter.
- Filters will be placed in sealed container during
transport.
- Analysis will be done gravimetrically using a micro
balance (0.00001 precision)
- To determine P.M
10
according to EPE (1982)
P.M
10
= 0.55xP.M will be used.

II. Settle plate sampling technique
- Pour a sterile medium into sterile plate and avoid
surface moisture, Mark them with distinctive numbers
and prepare a recorded of the position, time and
duration for the exposure of each.

204
- Uncover the plate in its chosen position for the
measured period of time, and then at once replace its
lid. It is generally suitable to expose plates on tables
with legs about 1m above the ground.
- Incubate the plates aerobically for 24 to 49 hrs at
37
o
C.
- Count the colonies, preferably with the use of colony
counter (plate microscope) to detect the smallest
ones.
- Express the results as the number of bacteria carrying
particles setting on a given area in a given period of
time.

205
Annex-4
Composition of clean, dry atmospheric air

Component Concentration
(ppm)
Estimated
residence time
Nitrogen 78.1x10
4
Continuous
Oxygen 21x10
4
Continuous
Argon 93x10
2
Continuous
Carbon dioxide 3.2x102 2-4 years
Neon 18 Continuous
Helium 5.2 Up to 2 million years
Krypton 1 Continuous
Xenon 8x10
-2
Continuous
CO 0.1 0.5 years
Methane 1.2 4-7years
N
2
O 25x10
-2
4 years
NO 6x10
-4
5 days
NH
3
6x10
-3
7 days
H
2
S 2x10
-4
2 days
SO
2
3x10
-4
4 days
H 0.5 *
O
3
0.02 Up to 60 days
*little is known about residence time

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